Kim Resigns as KOC Chief
By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter
Korean Olympic Committee (KOC) President Kim Jung-kil resigned his position Monday after feuding with government officials over selecting the Korea Sports Council's new secretary general.
Kim first expressed his intentions to step down at an emergency board meeting at the KOC headquarters last Friday, claiming that the refusal by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to approve his nominee, Koo Ahn-sook, as secretary general equaled as a vote of no confidence against him.
With Kim refusing to name an interim president, the KOC is likely to hold a board meeting soon and begin the process of electing a new leader. A prolonged leadership vacancy at the country's top sporting body could cause a negative effect in the preparations for the Beijing Olympics in August.
``It is apparent that the government wants a different person for the job, and the level of support to our Olympic athletes would be stronger if they get the person they want," said Kim in a news conference at the KOC headquarters in southern Seoul.
``The leaders of Korean sporting bodies have always changed every time a new president took office. I hope I am the last person in that line of history," said Kim, whose term originally ran until February of next year.
The Korea Sports Council, which doubles as the country's Olympic committee, nominated former Kookmin Bank Vice President Koo in February, making her the first woman ever to be named for the job.
The sporting body had been looking for a high-profile woman to take the post in the aftermath of a public relations crisis earlier this year following reports of rampant sexual abuse of female athletes at the scholastic level, which exposed sports authorities' loose control over the issue.
However, the ministry rejected Koo's nomination, citing that the 53-year-old had no previous experience related to sports.
There is a sentiment among the KOC that suspects South Korea President Lee Myung-bak's government of attempting to push out heads of sporting organizations selected by the former government and replace them with the president's confidants.