[Olympics] International Skating Union Supports Controversial Referee "No Protests Allowed"

"Hwang Daeheon Penalized for 'Late Lane Change Causing Contact'"
"Sandor Behind Run Ziwei, No Priority Entering Corner"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The International Skating Union (ISU) has stated that it cannot accept the South Korean team's protest against the short track refereeing decisions. On the 8th (Korean time), it issued a statement detailing the referees' decisions made during the men's 1000m short track event at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics on the 7th.

In the men's 1000m semifinals, Hwang Daeheon (Gangwon Province Office) and Lee Junseo (Korea National Sport University) finished first and second in their heat but were disqualified due to questionable rulings. Both were penalized for lane changes deemed to be fouls, allowing China's Li Wenlong and Wu Dajing, who finished third in the heat, to advance to the final. There was no contact that could be considered problematic, nor any obstruction of the Chinese skaters' paths.

However, the ISU stated, "Hwang Daeheon was penalized for a 'late lane change causing contact,' as announced on the arena video screen." Regarding Hungary's Shaolin S?ndor Liu, who received a yellow card in the final and lost the gold medal, the ISU said, "He committed two fouls: the first was a lane change on the straight that caused contact, and the second was blocking the opponent with his arm at the finish line."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The ISU emphasized, "Based on the federation's regulations, the referees did not accept the protest," and added, "Decisions by referees regarding disqualification due to rule violations cannot be protested." Furthermore, "Regardless of the mentioned regulations, the chief referee reviewed the incident again with the video referee and upheld his final decision."

The chief referee who made the nearly biased decisions is Peter Wors from the United Kingdom. He has served as a referee multiple times in domestic competitions invited by the Korea Skating Union and was reportedly well-regarded. However, in this tournament, he repeatedly made difficult-to-understand rulings that greatly benefited the Chinese skaters.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

With Hwang Daeheon and Lee Junseo eliminated, China gained two additional spots in the final, allowing them to manage the race advantageously. However, they could not catch up to Shaolin S?ndor Liu's speed and ultimately relied once again on home advantage to take the gold (Ren Ziwei) and silver medals (Li Wenlong). Regarding this, the ISU stated, "The chief referee pointed out that Shaolin S?ndor Liu attempted to overtake on the straight but was behind Ren Ziwei and had no priority entering the corner, and that he committed fouls twice by pushing the opponent with his arm, which warranted penalties."

The South Korean team plans to appeal this matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).