Coach who begged late Choi Sook-hyun to "let go and leave," denies charges

On the afternoon of the 2nd, the director of the Gyeongju City Hall Triathlon team is coming out of the Gyeongju City Sports Council office located in Hwangseong-dong, Gyeongju-si, Gyeongbuk Province.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kang Juhee] The coach of the Gyeongju City Triathlon (Ironman) team in Gyeongbuk, who was known to have assaulted the late athlete Choi Sook-hyun, who made an extreme choice after suffering from habitual violence and abuse, has reportedly denied most of the charges.

At the personnel committee meeting of the Gyeongju City Sports Council held on the 2nd, the coach reportedly claimed, "I did not hit athlete Choi, and rather protected the athlete by stopping the team doctor’s assault."

He also stated, "I introduced athlete Choi to triathlon and was more attached to her compared to other athletes," and "I arranged for her transfer to another team earlier this year." He further claimed that they maintained a close relationship, with athlete Choi sending text messages expressing gratitude.

The audio file released by the bereaved family of the late athlete Choi Sook-hyun does not contain any scenes of the coach assaulting the deceased. However, it confirms that the coach was complicit when the team doctor mercilessly assaulted the athletes.

Additionally, the coach reportedly sent a text message to athlete Choi’s father five months ago, saying, "This is my first and last request. I take full responsibility. I will give everything up and leave," pleading for forgiveness.

The coach appears to have changed his stance after athlete Choi actively responded by filing a violence report with the Korea Sports & Olympic Committee’s Sports Human Rights Center since April.

On the 2nd, the Gyeongju City Sports Council decided at the personnel committee meeting to exclude the coach from his duties. Two athletes accused as perpetrators denied the assault and verbal abuse, so they were reportedly not subject to disciplinary action.

The Gyeongju City Sports Council plans to compile related suspicions and file additional complaints with investigative authorities soon.

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