"Completely Crazy Act" Japan, Hungary, and 3 Other Countries Also Protest Beijing Olympic Judging Controversy

Korean Team Decides to File Complaint with Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)
Mass Disqualifications in Ski Jumping Spark Backlash from 5 Countries

Korean national team member Hwang Daeheon competing in the men's 1000m short track semifinal heat 1 at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Joo-hee] The Korean delegation at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics plans to file an appeal with the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding the disqualification of Korean athletes in the men's 1000m short track semifinals.

On the 8th, Yoon Hong-geun, head of the Korean delegation, held an emergency press conference at the Main Media Center (MMC) in Beijing, China, stating, "We plan to strongly urge the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ensure that such unfair incidents never happen again," and added, "Through Lee Ki-heung, IOC member and president of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee, and Yoo Seung-min, IOC athlete representative, we have requested an immediate meeting with IOC President Bach." Yoon also said, "We will file an appeal directly with CAS soon."

Korea is not the only country outraged by China's biased rulings. Hungary, which lost the gold medal due to disqualification despite crossing the finish line first in the men's 1000m short track final, also expressed strong dissatisfaction with the decision. Hungarian athlete Shaolin Sandor Liu finished first ahead of Chinese athlete Ren Ziwei but was disqualified after a video review penalty.

Hungarian media Magyar Nemzet reported, "Shaolin won, but was disqualified after the video review," adding, "There was a slight collision during the race, but it appeared to be mutual responsibility, and the ruling is clearly debatable." The Hungarian delegation immediately filed an objection with the International Skating Union (ISU) regarding the decision, but the ISU did not accept it.

In Japan, there was significant criticism over the disqualification of Sara Takanashi in the mixed team ski jumping event due to her uniform being too loose. Kyodo News reported, "A scandal erupted with multiple disqualifications for uniform violations," and noted, "Despite a strong performance, Sara Takanashi failed to win a medal."

Germany, Norway, and Austria also strongly protested disqualifications in ski jumping for the same reason as Takanashi. Stefan Horngacher, head coach of the German team, told the media, "This is completely insane," and protested, "We were given no explanation for the disqualification decisions."

Norwegian athlete Silje Opseth said, "The judges measured the uniforms in a completely different way and used a new method," adding, "We were told to stand differently than we had before." Austrian athlete Manuel P?tzner also expressed doubts about the ruling, stating, "I want to make it clear that I know what is allowed and what is not."

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