President-elect Yoo Seung Min said, "I will put 'value' on physical education in Korea with leadership that is not afraid of change."
President-elect Yoo Seung Min said, "I will put 'value' on physical education in Korea with leadership that is not afraid of change."
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"Who would say to entrepreneurs, 'You have to contribute to society through sponsorship of sports?' It was possible in the past, but not now. It would be much easier for companies to donate money through their own foundation. I'm planning to approach it in a new direction. You have to raise at least 50 billion won during your term in office."
Yoo Seung Min (43), the president-elect of the Korea Sports Council, was not outspoken. Although he said, "It can be a burden to me due to high expectations," he seemed to have finished preparing to bring about a new wind in sports in Korea by using words such as "change," "winner" and "attack" frequently throughout the interview.
After winning the gold medal in men's singles table tennis at the 2004 Athens Olympics, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) athletes commissioner, the president of the Korea Table Tennis Association, and now the president of the Korean Olympic Committee. He accomplished all these things in a short period of time, which would be difficult for ordinary people to achieve. The victory was also like a miracle that most people expected to lose.
The Herald Economy met with Yoo, who recently became the youngest sports president in history in the 42nd election of the president of the Korea Sports Council, at the RSM Sports Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 31st of last month. Yoo, who will be officially inaugurated on the 28th, said, "If you only go stable in important games, you cannot win. We also went 99% offensively in the final of the Athens Olympics," adding, "Since we have lived such a life so far, I think we should throw too hard when throwing a winning move. Now is the time for Korean sports to throw a winning move."
-Not many expected victory in this election. It is similar to the Olympic gold medal and the election of the IOC athletes commissioner. Should we call it a miracle icon.
▶Please call me an icon of diligence. If you are not diligent, you will miss such challenges and opportunities. People told me to run in the next election because I was young again this time, but if I had thought about it by myself, I might not have been able to make the decision right away. However, after diligently visiting senior groups and teachers, I decided to run for election after seeking advice. I think that only when you are diligent, you can find direction and seize opportunities. I think that my life has not made me lazy.
-Since last year's Paris Olympics, the absurd practices of the sports community have come to the surface, and they have been criticized, but have they influenced their decision to run.
▶Honestly, yes. I thought about the election for the chairman of the sports association from May to June last year, but I didn't think deeply about it. However, with the Paris Olympics, I thought that it was time for something to change. Even if I don't get elected, I wanted my challenge to be courageous and hopeful for someone. Before and after the election, I received a lot of text messages from sportsmen on the field that we didn't pay attention to, including school sports teachers. "There are still cultures where it is difficult for the voices of the field to be heard to the world," the message was to change the culture of the sports community and reflect them well in policies to prevent their opinions from being asked.
-Expectations are high on the election of the new chairman. What kind of leadership does the Korean sports community want in 2025.
▶ This is a leadership that is not afraid of change. Still, many people in the sports world may not agree on the need for change. However, the question is whether they will achieve 50 without trying, or will they get either 0 or 100 after trying. Even in important competitions such as the Olympics, they cannot win if they remain stable. Now that the association's budget of 120 billion won has been wasted, it is time for the Korean sports community to make a winning move.
-What was the winning move when he met Chinese Wang Hao, who lost six games and six games in the final of the Athens Olympics.
▶ At that time, he was 99% aggressive. He was an unconditional attacker and there was no defense. I thought, "If I don't use my skills that I am good at, I can't beat the opponent." The difficult skill for me is that even the opponent is difficult. Since I have lived such a life, I think when throwing a winning move, I should throw even if I try too hard.
-He pledged to aggressively jump into corporate sponsorship. The economic situation at home and abroad is not good and the atmosphere of sponsorship is not the same as before. What kind of charm should he show.
▶ The era of corporate image enhancement and social contribution effect through sponsorship of sports is over. There are so many media outlets and the world knows even large Korean companies. There is no reason for companies to spend a lot of money. However, I will put "value" on Korean sports. I think Samsung Electronics, the top sponsor of the IOC, and Kia, the sponsor of the Australian Open, are continuing their sponsorship based on "value" beyond simple events. We will melt the value that Korean sports has, while significantly increasing the authority that companies can gain through sponsorship. If so, we hope that Korean companies will send us positive signals. We want to raise at least 50 billion won (approx.
-Critics point out that Korea's sports performance and citizens who enjoy and support the sport are at the level of advanced countries, but the administration of sports still remains in the past. What direction should the reform of the Korea Sports Council go.
▶The organization needs to be transformed into an active organization. Like the IOC, the sports association has 31 subcommittees. However, the IOC subcommittee has an active structure that holds a commission week once a year and monitors and enforces all the information that comes from each subcommittee. However, nine of the 31 subcommittees have never held a single meeting last year. We want to make the organization more efficient and mobile.
-After being elected, the changes in local and school sports were cited as the fastest tasks to be solved.
▶Although it is a difficult pledge, it is urgent to become independent of the local sports association and revive school sports activities. However, I cannot solve this problem alone. The National Assembly and the government should help us. In particular, the revision of the law should guarantee students' right to exercise. Student athletes cannot start training until 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. after school hours. They go for private tutoring. It is also a burden to parents. It is a desperate crisis for promising players to disappear.
-Two sons are playing soccer, so you can hear the voices of the field more closely.
▶My first son wants to work out only, while he works hard for both exercise and study. When I exercise, I always
-After his election, he visited the late former Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Yang-ho's grave. (Yoo took the post of chairman of the Korea Table Tennis Association, which became vacant after Cho's death in 2019, and led the association for five years.)
▶He showed me his affection until he passed away. When I was eliminated from the selection contest for the national team at the 2010 Asian Games in Gwangju, Chairman Cho was very happy. (Laughs) He said, "You have to stay away from me. Now I'm going to get my act together." In fact, I think you saw me relaxed after winning the gold medal in the 2004 Olympic Games and the bronze in the team event in 2008. Chairman Cho's words awakened me. I was able to win a silver medal in the team event in 2012 and achieve a successful conclusion. I am grateful that he encouraged me to broaden my knowledge and fully supported me in the election of the IOC athletes commission.
-What kind of evaluation does the "Korea Sports Council President Lee Yoo Seung Min" want after his term ends. 안전놀이터
▶I want to remain a "well-working president" who is asked to work here and there. In fact, I feel a lot of pressure because people have high expectations for me. It's as if you are given the spotlight as "No. 1 gold medal" before the opening of the Olympics. Nevertheless, I will work hard by gathering the voices I heard at the scene and the experiences I have gained at the IOC for the past eight years. If not 100 percent, I have confidence that I will be able to meet at least 60 percent of the expectations.