Death of South Korean athlete Choi Sook-hyun amid allegations of violence and abuse sparks uproar
- Choi Sook-hyun took her own life last week after filing a litany of complaints about abuse she said she had suffered at the hands of her coach and a doctor
- The 22-year-old triathlete’s death recalls the court case of Olympic short-track skater Shim Suk-hee, who went public with allegations of abuse in 2018
The death of a young South Korean athlete has sparked public uproar after allegations she was abused emerged during police investigations.
Choi Sook-hyun took her own life last week after filing a litany of complaints about the violence and abuse she said she had suffered at the hands of her coach and a team doctor.
The 22-year-old triathlete was frustrated and angry at the slow pace of investigations, according to her family, with many of her colleagues refusing to give testimony – apparently out of fear of retaliation.
Audio tapes released by YTN TV appeared to corroborate allegations by her parents that Choi, who was on the Gyeongju City team, had been subject to repeated beatings, verbal abuse and harassment by her coach, a team doctor and other senior athletes.
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“You! Come here. Clamp your jaws together,” a male voice can be heard to say on one recording, followed by the sound of repeated slapping. “I will teach you a lesson if you sulk tomorrow. OK?”, the voice says afterward.
A diary Choi kept documented how she “shed tears every day”, with her writing she would “rather die” after repeatedly being “beaten like a dog”.
The abuse she suffered included being forced to buy 200,000 won (US$166) worth of bread on one occasion and made to eat it all in one sitting as a punishment for gaining weight, her father told journalists.
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In a statement, the Korea Triathlon Federation promised to take action against the alleged abusers and expressed its “deep condolences” for the family and friends of Choi, who was selected for South Korea’s national triathlon team in 2015 while still a teenager.
The Korea Sport and Olympic Committee, the country’s top governing body for sports, said in a separate statement that investigations were under way into allegations that authorities had been sitting on Choi’s complaints and attempted to cover them up.
The committee finds it very regrettable that such an incident happened again
“The committee finds it very regrettable that such an incident happened again even as we have been making efforts to prevent violence and sexual assaults and to protect athletes’ human rights”, it said, adding that it plans to conduct education programmes aimed at preventing a recurrence.
Both the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee and the Korea Skating Union issued public apologies at the time, vowing to instigate reforms.
Yeo Jun-hyung, a human-rights activist who helped shed light on Shim’s case, said some “superficial” changes had been made, including the establishment of centres to receive abuse complaints from athletes and the introduction of harsher punishments for violence, but noted that a culture of fear was still pervasive in the country’s sporting circles.
“Athletes can’t simply speak out due to fear that their career in sports would be over. Their coaches know this and they still take advantage of their silence,” Yeo said.
If you are having suicidal thoughts, or you know someone who is, help is available. For Hong Kong, dial +852 2896 0000 for The Samaritans or +852 2382 0000 for Suicide Prevention Services. In the US, call The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on +1 800 273 8255. For a list of other nations’ helplines, see this page
