[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Controversy has arisen over the depiction of Korean athletes as foul players in the Chinese short track-themed film "Fly, Light on Ice."
On the official Weibo of iQIYI, known as the "Chinese Netflix," a post was made on the 12th announcing the release of the film "Fly, Light on Ice."
The film tells the story of Cheong Hwan, a rural boy working as a deliveryman, who starts short track skating influenced by his mother, a former national team member, and after harsh training, grows into a national representative.
The problematic scene is where Cheong Hwan competes against Korean athletes. Cheong Hwan participates in a world competition and competes with Korean players. During the match, the Korean athletes commit fouls such as deliberately tripping or colliding with Cheong Hwan.
As a result, Cheong Hwan suffers injuries, including bleeding over his eyes, but he does not give up the race and ultimately wins the championship after completing the race.
Domestic netizens who saw the film expressed disbelief. They criticized, saying, "It reminds me of the proverb 'The one who farted gets angry'," "It's the pot calling the kettle black," "I don't understand why Korean athletes were portrayed as foul players," and "Don't they have any conscience?"
Following the appearance of a woman wearing hanbok at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony and the controversy over biased short track judging, public resentment toward China is growing.
In response, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Korea issued a statement on the embassy's social media on the 9th, saying, "We cannot help but express serious concern and declare a firm stance."
The spokesperson said, "Some Korean media and politicians have criticized the Chinese government and the entire Beijing Olympics, even inciting anti-China sentiment, worsening the feelings between the two peoples and provoking counterattacks from Chinese netizens. We cannot help but express serious concern and declare a firm stance on this."
He added, "The Chinese government will never influence or interfere with competition results," and "China cannot accept the very irresponsible attitude of some Korean media and politicians who make baseless claims that 'there is a dark side to the Olympics' and recklessly say that 'Chinese authorities need to reflect'."
Regarding this statement, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Choi Youngsam said at a regular briefing on the 10th, "Foreign missions' public statements on host country media reports and politicians' remarks should be made cautiously, respecting the host country's situation and sentiment." He added, "Our Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue necessary communication in line with this stance."
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