By Kim Tong-hyung
Surviving a bizarre threat to her club football career, Park Eun-seon is now getting the chance to represent her country.
Yoon Deok-yeo, manager of the women's national team, said Wednesday that Park was included in his provisional roster of 50 for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup tournament kicking off in Vietnam next month. The final roster of 23 will be announced next Monday.
Park, a 1.8-meter forward for the Seoul City Amazones, is considered one of the country's top scorers. However, she is coming off a traumatic personal experience. In November, the head coaches from six other teams in the WK-League questioned Park's gender and threatened to boycott this season if the 27-year-old continues to play for the Amazones.
Park's masculine appearance had previously been a source of complaint ― she was forced to go through a gender test to compete in the 2004 Athens Olympics due to questions from other competing nations.
Still, there was no plausible reason for anyone to doubt Park is a woman at that point last year and Seoul City accused its rivals of conspiring to sideline its best player for competitive reasons.
Facing a firestorm of criticism, which included a warning from the National Human Rights Commission, the coaches eventually withdrew their demand for Park's exclusion.
Park seems intent on taking out her frustration on the field. The Amazones are on top of the league table after five games this season and Park has been spearheading their attack with four goals.
The Asian Cup, a tournament between Asian nations, doubles as a qualification round for the 2015 Women's World Cup in Canada. The top five teams will earn a spot to compete in Canada.
''Park is a good player and her form has been improving. There are no questions about her ability,'' Yoon said.
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| Park Eun-seon |
Yoon Deok-yeo, manager of the women's national team, said Wednesday that Park was included in his provisional roster of 50 for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup tournament kicking off in Vietnam next month. The final roster of 23 will be announced next Monday.
Park, a 1.8-meter forward for the Seoul City Amazones, is considered one of the country's top scorers. However, she is coming off a traumatic personal experience. In November, the head coaches from six other teams in the WK-League questioned Park's gender and threatened to boycott this season if the 27-year-old continues to play for the Amazones.
Park's masculine appearance had previously been a source of complaint ― she was forced to go through a gender test to compete in the 2004 Athens Olympics due to questions from other competing nations.
Still, there was no plausible reason for anyone to doubt Park is a woman at that point last year and Seoul City accused its rivals of conspiring to sideline its best player for competitive reasons.
Facing a firestorm of criticism, which included a warning from the National Human Rights Commission, the coaches eventually withdrew their demand for Park's exclusion.
Park seems intent on taking out her frustration on the field. The Amazones are on top of the league table after five games this season and Park has been spearheading their attack with four goals.
The Asian Cup, a tournament between Asian nations, doubles as a qualification round for the 2015 Women's World Cup in Canada. The top five teams will earn a spot to compete in Canada.
''Park is a good player and her form has been improving. There are no questions about her ability,'' Yoon said.
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