Bad business in South Korea. Nine months after the PyeongChang Winter Games, one of the best stories of the Olympic fortnight, the silver medal of the women's curling team, today reveals less glorious tomorrows.
According to national media, the five players of the “Garlic Team” accuse their coaches of exploitation and verbal abuse. They say to themselves “ unhappy and in a desperate situation. "They point the finger at the former vice-president of the Korean Curling Federation (KCF), Kim Kyung-doo, guilty in their eyes of having subjugated them" to countless verbal abuse. »
According to the five young women, from the same village of Uiseong, known in the country for its garlic cultivation, Captain Kim Eung-jung was sidelined after her marriage and the announcement of her decision to 'have a baby. “ Athletes' human rights are violated", they wrote in a letter to the South Korean Olympic Committee (KSOC).
Another complaint: the coaches allegedly kept the money won in several international competitions, for a total of several tens of thousands of dollars. The players say they are victims of a power struggle within the Korean Curling Federation. Finally, they claim to have been prevented by coaches from participating in national competitions, a maneuver intended to exclude them from the national team and, by extension, to deprive them of federal funding.
In South Korea, the affair caused a stir. The five players responded to an interview on the national channel SBS that holds the top spot. " We have been at a standstill since the Winter Games and we are unhappy.”, they admitted.
The South Korean Sports Ministry has opened an investigation.
