"You Told Me to Go Back to My Country, So I Came Home"... Where Did Fabian Go After the 'Malicious Comment Attack'?

Introducing Korea as North Korea at the Opening Ceremony
Mistakes Continue Despite Apology from IOC President
Also Misspelling Osanguk's Name as 'Osanggu'

As the 2024 Paris Olympics recently opened, the organizing committee has sparked controversy by first mistakenly introducing South Korea as North Korea during the opening ceremony and then misspelling the name of men's sabre individual gold medalist Oh Sang-wook in fencing. Amid this, French-born broadcaster Fabien confessed to receiving malicious comments over the '2024 Paris Olympics' mistakes.

On the 28th, the YouTube channel 'Fabien Yoon' uploaded a video titled 'Olympics D1! Swimming Medal After 12 Years! Feat Comment Terror'. [Photo by YouTube channel 'Fabien Yoon']

On the 28th, Fabien uploaded a video titled "Olympics D1! First Swimming Medal in 12 Years! Feat Comment Attacks" on his YouTube channel 'Fabien Yoon'. In the video, Fabien said, "I am here at the Paris venue to cheer for swimmer Kim Woo-min," adding, "I have a connection with Kim Woo-min." He explained, "Last February, I went to Qatar to watch the Asian Cup, but after South Korea was eliminated and I had nothing else to do, I went to watch the World Swimming Championships. Kim Woo-min participated there and won a gold medal. Since that day, I have been cheering hard." He also shared a special connection with swimmer Kim Woo-min, saying, "Kim Woo-min was sitting right next to me on the plane to Korea. I thought it might be fate."

Fabien pointed out, "As you probably already know, something really absurd happened at the (Olympic) opening ceremony. When the South Korean delegation entered, the Olympic organizing committee introduced Korea as North Korea." He continued, "I was broadcasting live on SBS and didn’t realize it at all, but I found out only after the broadcast ended. It was so ridiculous and really made me angry. It’s truly embarrassing that such a thing happened at a global sporting event like the Olympics." He added, "Since this Olympics is held in my country, as a French person who loves Korea, I am very angry, disappointed, and upset about this situation."

Moreover, Fabien had to endure numerous criticisms on behalf of the Paris Olympic organizing committee’s mistakes simply because he is French. Fabien said, "When I got home, I found myself under attack on Instagram, email, and comments," adding, "In fact, in some ways, this is not unfamiliar to me."

Also Harassed with Malicious Comments for Being a Paris Saint-Germain Fan

Earlier, Fabien had to endure malicious comments after the dispute between Lee Kang-in and Son Heung-min became public during the 2023 Asian Cup held in Qatar by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) in February. This was because he is a fan of Paris Saint-Germain, a French Ligue 1 team to which Lee Kang-in belongs, and also a fan of Lee Kang-in himself. Fabien said, "I was attacked with comment attacks when Lee Kang-in and Son Heung-min fought," adding, "Now, since the Olympics are being held in my country, I am getting a lot of criticism again." He jokingly added, "Since I am currently in my hometown, I’m glad I don’t have to book a flight in response to comments telling me to 'go back to your country' this time."

Netizens responded to the video with comments such as, "What on earth did Fabien do wrong?", "There are really too many strange people. They should not cross the line and act rationally. They are leaving malicious comments on someone who came to cheer for Korea," "It’s not Fabien’s fault that they said North Korea," "Fabien, don’t pay attention to those people," and "There’s absolutely no reason to criticize Fabien, so why are they doing it?"

Meanwhile, Thomas, an IOC member, apologized for introducing South Korea as North Korea. However, mistakes have continued, such as misspelling fencing men’s sabre gold medalist Oh Sang-wook’s name as 'Oh Sang-gu'.