President Min Yuseung: "Sports Administration Paralyzed"... Urges Government and Police for Swift Resolution

"Respect for Freedom of Assembly... Public Functions Must Not Be Infringed"

"Infringement on National Athletes' Rights... Legal Action Under Review"

On June 15, Yuseung Min, President of the Korean Olympic Committee, held a joint press conference with Korean sports officials at the Olympic Parktel in Seoul. He urged the government and police to promptly devise a solution, emphasizing that the damage to sports organizations caused by the 'Jamsil Vote Counting Center Protest' is growing.

The press conference was attended by President Min and the secretary-generals of nine member sports organizations whose offices are located inside the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium.

The Handball Gymnasium served as the vote counting center for the 9th Nationwide Local Elections on June 3. Since then, election-related protests have continued in the area, leaving the sports organizations unable to access their offices normally for more than ten days.

Yoo Seung-min, President of the Korea Sports Council, urges the government and police to promptly devise a resolution plan regarding the 'Jamsil vote-counting center protest' at a press conference held on the 15th at the Olympic Parktel in Seoul. Korea Sports Council

While the Korean Olympic Committee and its member organizations stated that they respect the constitutional freedom of assembly and protest, they expressed concerns that prolonged access restrictions have caused severe disruptions to key sports administration work, including support for national athletes, preparation for international competitions, and the operation of sports federations.

The nine sports organizations based in the Handball Gymnasium are billiards, dancesport, mountaineering, sepak takraw, water skiing and wakeboarding, underwater and finswimming, wushu, fencing, and handball. Among them, six—dancesport, mountaineering, sepak takraw, wushu, fencing, and handball—are sports competing in the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games scheduled for September. Due to the prolonged protests, the Korean Fencing Federation, which is preparing for the Asian Fencing Championships, and the Korea Underwater and Finswimming Federation, which is hosting the Incheon World Finswimming Championships, explained that they have been unable to remove essential training equipment and materials, making it difficult to support national team training and carry out administrative work.

President Min stated, "The damage caused by this work stoppage has grown to as much as 6 billion won, and there are significant disruptions in supporting athletes ahead of the Asian Games," adding, "We request the exercise of public authority so that we can at least remove items essential for our work."

Earlier in the day, Jeongbo Park, Commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, commented at a regular press briefing that the blockade of access to the sports organizations is "clearly an illegal act and is being documented," suggesting the possibility of applying the charge of obstruction of business to the protesters. In response, President Min said, "The sports organizations can no longer endure this situation," and requested, "We ask for the prompt deployment of public authority so that our offices can return to normal operations as soon as possible."

President Min also remarked, "Citizens have the right to vote and the freedom of assembly, so I hoped for a peaceful resolution. However, as the situation has worsened, the anxiety among athletes and coaches has increased. We have tried various approaches, including dialogue and persuasion, but have come to the conclusion that there are no other options, which is why we are now speaking out." He further mentioned that some protesters have threatened student athletes entering the Handball Gymnasium, searched their belongings, and verbally abused staff entering the offices.

In the joint press statement released on this day, the Korean Olympic Committee and 71 member sports organizations declared, "Although sports officials are not parties to this conflict, they are bearing the most damage," and stressed, "Immediate access to sports administration spaces and the ability to perform normal work must be guaranteed so that the rights of national athletes and the public function of Korean sports are no longer infringed upon." They continued, "The government and police must seriously recognize the damages suffered by the sports organizations and swiftly devise a solution," adding, "If obstruction of work and damages are confirmed, we will consider all possible legal actions, including civil and criminal liability."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.