[Exclusive] KSOC Chairman Lee Kee-heung's reappointment approved

[Anchor]

KBS has exclusively obtained the minutes from the Sports Fairness Committee meeting, which opened the first gateway for current chairman Lee Kee-heung, who is aiming for a third term as the Korean Sports & Olympic Committee chairman.

It has been revealed that the fairness committee members, appointed directly by the chairman, gave generous scores without specific grounds and rushed the approval without reflecting the suspension of duties.

Reporter Park Sun-woo has the details.

[Report]

At the Sports Fairness Committee meeting of the Korean Sports & Olympic Committee held on the 12th of last month, the sports union urged for a fair review after the investigation request against Chairman Lee Kee-heung, but the atmosphere inside the meeting was different.

Chairman Lee Kee-heung received high scores of 16 out of 20 in the efforts and potential for being elected as an executive of an international organization, and 8 out of 10 in the category of entering international organizations during the first review by the fairness committee's subcommittee.

The application of the exception rule to extend the term of Chairman Lee, who will turn 70 next year and reach the age limit for IOC members, is indeed difficult to guarantee.

Nevertheless, it has been confirmed that the fairness committee members decided on generous scores based on mere speculation without specific grounds.

Despite various controversies surrounding Chairman Lee due to allegations of corruption, there were even claims to avoid linking the suspension of duties and the review, using expressions that the success rate of the investigation was insufficient.

Some opinions suggesting to discuss more cautiously while watching the investigation progress regarding Chairman Lee were also not accepted.

Ultimately, the fairness committee members appointed by the chairman hurriedly opened the door to his third term challenge, making it impossible to avoid criticism of being a mere rubber stamp.

[Kim Seung-su/Member of the National Assembly Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee/People Power Party: "In a situation where a suspension of duties has been issued, how can the public accept that he received high scores in terms of integrity and also perfect scores in operational soundness?"]

Chairman Lee is also currently facing ongoing issues related to allegations of bid rigging in the Jincheon Athletes' Village.

Amid Chairman Lee's continuing legal risks, former table tennis association president Yoo Seung-min has officially declared his candidacy for the Korean Sports & Olympic Committee chairman election.

Yoo Seung-min has also expressed intentions for opposition party candidate unification, taking concrete steps to prevent Chairman Lee's third term.

This is KBS News, Park Sun-woo.