Korean Olympic Committee accused of belittling IOC

Korean Sport and Olympic Committee President Lee Kee-heung / Yonhap

By Jung Min-ho

The Korean Sport and Olympic Committee (KOC) has apologized over claims that its officials ignored volunteers at the PyeongChang Games and belittled the International Olympic Committee (IOC) while arguing with the volunteers.

The KOC apologized on Saturday, saying its president, Lee Kee-heung, resolved the issue with volunteers.

Lee and other KOC officials were accused of rejecting two volunteers’ request to leave seats reserved for IOC members at the Alpensia Cross-Country Skiing Center, Thursday, for no clear reason.

Lee reportedly said he would not change his seat “until IOC President Thomas Bach comes here.” Another KOC official also reportedly said, “The IOC is nothing … We are the host nation.”

The KOC did not reveal what the officials exactly said.

The issue came into the spotlight after a volunteer anonymously complained to an online community for Olympic contract workers and volunteers.