[Olympics] Short Track Judging Controversy Beyond Limits, Filed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport

Korean Sport "Officially Declares Unfair Judgments... Will Prevent Unjust Situations for Athletes"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Korean delegation that participated in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will file an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding the judgment in the men's 1000m short track semifinals held on the 7th. The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee announced that team leader Yoon Hong-geun held an emergency press conference at the Beijing Winter Olympics Main Media Center on the morning of the 8th and declared the appeal to CAS. An official stated, "We will formalize the unfairness of this judgment to ensure that such unjust incidents never happen again to our athletes in the international skating and sports community."

In the men's 1000m semifinals, Hwang Dae-heon (Gangwon Provincial Office) and Lee Jun-seo (Korea National Sport University) finished first and second in their heats but were disqualified due to questionable rulings. Both were accused of committing fouls by changing lanes, allowing Chinese skaters Li Wenlong and Wu Dajing, who finished third in their heat, to advance to the finals. There was no contact that could be considered problematic. There was also no obstruction of the Chinese skaters' paths.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Chinese skaters also took the gold (Ren Ziwei) and silver (Li Wenlong) medals in the finals under controversial rulings. The referees issued two penalties and a yellow card to Hungarian skater Shaolin S?ndor Liu, who crossed the finish line first. Meanwhile, Ren Ziwei, who blatantly pulled Shaolin S?ndor's left arm just before the finish line, received no penalty.

The Korean delegation strongly protested to the short track referee chief immediately after the race and sent letters of protest to the International Skating Union (ISU) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee explained the background of the appeal, stating, "This decision to appeal considers our athletes who have worked hard with blood and sweat, as well as the public sentiment in Korea regarding biased judgments. We have comprehensively judged that the refereeing decisions cannot gain support in the international sports community and that the relationships with the unfair and non-transparent international federations and international referees are also factors." They added, "This appeal will serve as an opportunity to prevent repeated controversies and disadvantages regarding rulings against Korean athletes that have occurred multiple times in the past."