‘Bullying Driving Controversy’ Noh Seon-yeong Ordered to Pay Kim Bo-reum 3 Million Won... "Verbal Abuse Acknowledged"

There Was No "Wangtta Driving"... "Acknowledgment of Verbal Abuse and Swearing Against Kim Bo-reum"

Kim Bo-reum. Photo by Asia Economy DB

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] Speed skater Kim Boreum (Gangwon Provincial Office), who competed in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, won partial victory in the first trial of a civil lawsuit she filed against former national team member Noh Seon-yeong, who was involved in the past 'isolation skating' controversy.

The Civil Division 36 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Hwang Soon-hyun) ruled on the 16th in the damages lawsuit where Kim Boreum claimed 200 million KRW against Noh Seon-yeong, stating, "The defendant shall pay the plaintiff 3 million KRW," resulting in a partial win for the plaintiff.

The court acknowledged that "the defendant verbally abused and cursed the junior plaintiff for skating lap times too fast between November and December 2017." Verbal abuse that occurred before November 2017 was excluded from compensation due to the statute of limitations.

However, the court did not accept Kim Boreum's claim that she suffered damages from Noh Seon-yeong's interviews, stating, "Some facts that appear to be false were not directly referring to the plaintiff but rather raised issues about the federation or were somewhat exaggerated from the defendant's perspective."

Kim Boreum crossed the finish line first in the women's team pursuit quarterfinals at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, competing alongside Noh Seon-yeong and Park Ji-woo. Later, Noh Seon-yeong finished far behind, and criticism arose that Kim Boreum did not support the last skater, Noh Seon-yeong, leading to controversy over her interview attitude and expanding public criticism.

In response, Kim Boreum filed a 200 million KRW damages lawsuit against Noh Seon-yeong in November 2020, following media interviews in January 2019 where she claimed to have been continuously harassed and verbally abused by Noh Seon-yeong. At that time, Noh Seon-yeong denied the allegations, stating, "I did not do such things."

The court stated, "Regarding whether the plaintiff's reputation was damaged by the defendant's false interviews, it is necessary first to determine whether the plaintiff isolated the defendant and engaged in abnormal skating by suddenly accelerating in the final phase, known as 'isolation skating.'" It added, "The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism conducted a special audit and concluded that there was no isolation skating, and the court shares the same opinion."

Noh Seon-yeong's side argued in court, "Even if verbal abuse and assault occurred, the statute of limitations for illegal acts has expired, and the defendant is four years senior to the plaintiff in university and did not violate social norms legally." However, the court sided with Kim Boreum through a partial victory ruling.

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