Asian Games: China says sorry after swimmer attacks South Korean rival during warm-up
Kim Hye-jin accidentally bumped into the unnamed swimmer, who then kicked her before the pair were separated
Members of the Chinese swimming team have apologised to South Korea after one of their athletes had an altercation in the pool at the Jakarta Aquatic Centre.
According to Korean news agency Yonhap, South Korean swimmer Kim Hye-jin was attacked by an unnamed Chinese swimmer in the warm-up pool.
The 24-year-old Kim was reported to have accidentally bumped into the Chinese swimmer and then said sorry. The Chinese swimmer failed to understand what she was saying and kicked her back.
The pair were then separated by coaches from both teams. Korean officials later said that a Chinese delegation visited them at the Asian Games Athletes Village in Jakarta to personally say sorry for the incident.
“The two swimmers had a quarrel after physical contact,” Yonhap quoted a Korean official as saying. “Kim apologised first but apparently the Chinese athlete did not understand what she said and attacked her.
“This kind of incident often happens during training. The coach of the Chinese swimmer has apologised.”
Kim took part in breaststroke events for the Koreans but failed to win a medal. She was part of the Korean 4x100m medley relay team who initially finished third on Thursday but was disqualified for jumping early. China were disqualified for the same reason after finishing second, allowing Hong Kong to win the silver.
