'Golf Empress' Park In-bee Selected as Korean Candidate for IOC Athletes' Commission

Golf player Park In-bee has been selected as the Korean candidate for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes' Commission for next year, the Korea Sports Council announced on the 14th.

On the 14th at 11 a.m., the Korea Sports Council held a senior council meeting at the InterContinental Seoul COEX Hotel and unanimously decided to recommend Park In-bee as the new IOC Athletes' Commission member during the Paris Olympics next year. The final confirmation as the Korean candidate for the IOC Athletes' Commission will be made through the Athletes' Commission meeting on the 16th and 17th.

Player Park In-bee participated in the closed interview for the selection of the Korean candidate for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes' Commission held on the 10th at Olympic Parktel in Bangi-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The IOC, known as the "United Nations of sports," is an international organization where Athletes' Commission members hold equal rights and responsibilities as IOC members. Only athletes who participated in the most recent Olympics or are active competitors in the upcoming Olympics where the election is held are eligible to apply. Their main role is to facilitate communication between athletes and the IOC and to promote sports diplomacy.

During the Paris Olympics next year, four new Athletes' Commission members will be elected, with one seat allocated to a Korean athlete. On the 10th, Park In-bee (golf), Jin Jong-oh (shooting), Kim Yeon-koung (volleyball), Lee Dae-hoon (taekwondo), and Kim So-young (badminton) underwent a closed interview, and on the 14th, Park In-bee was selected as the final candidate.

Park In-bee is a global star with 21 wins on the LPGA Tour and ranks 4th in all-time career earnings ($18.26 million). She achieved the "career Grand Slam" by winning all four major championships and also earned the first-ever "Golden Slam" by winning a gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

If ultimately selected as an IOC Athletes' Commission member, Park In-bee will become the third Korean ever to hold this title. Taekwondo gold medalist Moon Dae-sung was first elected during the 2008 Beijing Olympics after winning gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics, and Yoo Seung-min, men's singles table tennis gold medalist at the Athens Olympics and president of the Korea Table Tennis Association, was elected as an Athletes' Commission member during the 2016 Rio Olympics. Commissioner Yoo's eight-year term is nearing completion.

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