Before the Sochi Winter Olympics in February, curling was an unfamiliar sport to Koreans in general. This was because of the difficult and complicated rules, in addition to the use of stones and brooms not seen in other sports.
But curling is emerging as a popular sport after our female players performed well in Sochi. In this vein, it’s quite regrettable that a national team coach was sacked last week over allegations that he verbally abused and sexually harassed the female curlers, all of whom were members of the semi-professional club at Gyeonggi Provincial Government.
Gyeonggi government officials questioned the four players and the coach, surnamed Choi, and concluded that most of the allegations made by the curlers were true. According to the officials, Choi used foul language before the final at the World University Games in Italy last December. Choi also admitted to telling the curlers, “Do you like that I am holding your hand?’’ although he said he didn’t mean to sexually harass them.
The athletes also alleged that the coach forced them to donate part of their prize money after the Olympics to support middle and high school curling teams. Two of the curlers opposed the idea, and Choi scolded them.
Given that the coach offered an apology to the parents of the curlers, allegations about his misbehavior seem apparent, and we cannot but worry that the latest incident might throw cold water on the winter sport, which has been gaining momentum since the Sochi Games. The curlers also met the expectations of fans by reaching the semifinals at the world championship in Canada earlier this month.
But the reality facing them is poor indeed. With the number of registered athletes remaining at only 700, there are just two venues exclusive for curling.
Most worrisome is that the sporting world has been plagued by the repetition of violence ― both verbal and physical ― and sexual abuse. Just two months ago, right before the Sochi Olympics, a short-track coach quit amid allegations of sexual harassment.
All these stem from the deep-seated elitism in our sports arenas where players and coaches usually sacrifice everything to win medals in the Olympic Games. In the process, the protection of human rights becomes negligible easily.
The latest case ought to be a wake-up call to our sports leaders who have been dull to abuse allegations. Hopefully, the curlers will regain their composure and focus on training so that they can produce good results in the 2018 PyeongChang Games.