(MHN Sports Reporter Kwon Soo-yeon) “Ahn Se-young is not saying hello” The pointed remarks of Kim Taek-gyu, president of the Korea Badminton Association, once again ignited controversy.
Chairman Kim Taek-gyu attended the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism‘s government audit held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 22nd and testified that “(Ahn Se-young) does not say hello to seniors or coaches even when she goes to Denmark.”
On this day, Democratic Party lawmaker Yang Moon-seok pointed out to Chairman Kim, “At the last closed-door meeting of the Democratic Party, he said, ‘Maybe it’s because he’s a world-class star, but Ahn Se-young doesn’t say hello. He doesn’t even say hello to me, the head of the athlete’s village or the president of the association,’ but the head of the athlete’s village said something different.” .
Rep. Yang then pointed out, “Right after the (Paris) Olympics, Ahn Se-young rang an alarm throughout the Korean sports community, and (such a player) was criticized as a ‘bad-character, good-looking sports star.'” In addition, “Ahn Se-young said, ‘I may not say hello because I haven’t seen it, but I have never not said hello to my seniors, whether the president of the association or a teacher, after seeing them.'”
Chairman Kim Taek-gyu responded to this comment with a faint smile, saying, “Then I guess I’m the only one who feels that way,” to which Representative Yang responded with an angry expression, saying, “Chairman of the association, you’re playing with words.” Rep. Yang then said, “On this day, we are in the process of continuing to criticize the association’s careless and arbitrary attitude toward Ahn Se-young. (But) didn’t the president of the association criticize Ahn Se-young for not greeting him while pointing out Ahn Se-young’s personality?” raised it.
When Chairman Kim Taek-gyu responded again, “I received a call saying that I did not say hello to my seniors and coaches even when I went to Denmark last time,” Rep. Yang sighed while holding his head.
Meanwhile, Ahn Se-young (Samsung Life Insurance), who regained first place in the world rankings after completing the Denmark Open, returned home on the 22nd.
Ahn Se-young was embroiled in rumors of discord when he was spotted not interacting with national team coach Kim Hak-gyun and coach Sung Ji-hyun at the competition venue. However, in response to reporters’ questions, he left the airport simply saying, “I have nothing to say.”
Among these, according to an investigation by Rep. Jeong Yeon-wook of the People’s Power Party, a member of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, the previous day, it was revealed that the Badminton Association purchased products from sponsors with government subsidies, and that the association’s executives pocketed the attraction bonus.
According to Rep. Jeong Yeon-wook, when recruiting sponsors for the 2023 Badminton International Federation (BWF) World Senior Badminton Championships, the Badminton Association provided an additional condition of purchasing sponsor items worth about 300 million won. And it turned out that state subsidies were used to buy back goods.
Additionally, the association executives took 30 million won in sales bonuses, which is 10% of the donations.
According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s national subsidy guidelines, private contracts are, in principle, prohibited when purchasing goods and services exceeding 20 million won. It was confirmed that the Badminton Association executed an amount worth 300 million won through private contracts.
Rep. Jeong said, “This is an incident where the association provided Yonex with the preferential benefit of exclusive supply of items and swindled 10% of the donations,” adding, “It is a violation of the law and a socially unacceptable act. Appropriate punishment must be received.”
Photo = Yonhap News, SBS live screen, Rep. Jeong Yeon-wook’s office
