[Official] 'Ayukdae' Side "Proceeding Without Audience? Under Review"

MBC 2020 Lunar New Year Special Idol Star Athletics Championships Official Poster./Photo by MBC Idol Star Athletics Championships

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Seul-gi] The 'Idol Star Athletics Championships (ISAC)' organizers announced that they are considering holding the event without an audience.

On the 8th, posts circulated on social networking services (SNS) and online communities stating that "the Chuseok special recording of ISAC will be held without an audience due to the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19)."

In response, idol fans expressed frustration, saying, "A sports event with many people crowded indoors? Does that make sense?" and "The Olympics were canceled because of COVID-19, so how can ISAC proceed?"

Regarding this, the MBC variety show 'ISAC' production team stated on the same day, "We are currently reviewing whether to proceed and the method of implementation."

Meanwhile, last December, 'ISAC' was involved in a controversy when a male staff member at the filming site pulled the hair of Chuu, a member of the group 'LOONA,' who was a participant.

The 'ISAC' production team released an official statement at the time, saying, "On December 16th, during the recording of the '2020 Lunar New Year Special Idol Star Athletics Championships,' while conducting an interview, a staff member rudely pulled the hair of Chuu, a member of 'LOONA.' We sincerely apologize to Chuu, related parties, and fans."

They added, "The staff member deeply reflected on and regretted the incident and sincerely apologized to Chuu. We will also take greater care to prevent such incidents from happening again."

'ISAC' is a program where idol singers compete in various sports events and is broadcast annually during the Lunar New Year and Chuseok holidays.

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