"Even if the world ends tomorrow..." Why did this Korean Paralympic hero suddenly become the head of the Sports Ethics Center? [Interview ①]

*This content was translated by AI.

Today, April 20, is Disability Day. And Han Min-soo (56), the "Hero of Human Victory" and Acting Director of the Sports Ethics Center Lee (President), was busy advocating for human rights in the sports world, just as he did during his active career.

Acting Director Han Min-soo officially began his duties as Acting Director of the Sports Ethics Center Lee (President) on the 16th last month. He suddenly became the head of the Sports Ethics Center as an acting director after former Director Park Ji-young Lee (President) resigned due to personal reasons. About a month has passed since then. Recently, we met him in person at the Sports Ethics Center located in Mapo, Seoul, to hear his thoughts.

The Acting Director said, "In fact, I hesitated greatly at first. Although I have rich field experience from over 30 years of activity in the field of disability sports, I worried about whether I could properly perform this heavy responsibility as an administrative expert. However, I believe the Sports Ethics Center is a core institution that safeguards fairness and human rights in the sports world, and someone must feel a sense of responsibility and hold this position." He continued, "I have been serving as a director of the Sports Ethics Center since August 2024. It has been about a month since I started my duties as an acting director. Fortunately, the experts and staff in each department of the Center have helped me adapt quickly. I always approach my work with the mindset of 'Even if the world ends tomorrow, I will plant an apple tree.' Regardless of the term of office, I am focusing on ensuring the stability of the Center today and creating an environment where employees can work with conviction."

As a former para ice hockey player, Acting Director Han has accumulated a wide range of life experiences. He wore the national emblem for a total of 18 years, serving as captain of the national ice hockey team. Finally, he won a bronze medal at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Paralympics. At that time, he also served as the final torchbearer during the opening ceremony, moving audiences worldwide. He climbed Seoraksan's Daecheongbong with an impaired leg and also worked as a fashion model and bodybuilder. Recently, he has been exerting a positive influence on society as a lecturer on improving awareness of mid-life disabilities.

Acting Director Han stated, "Over the past 30 years, I have experienced various roles in the field of disability sports, including as an athlete, coach, secretary-general of an Association, and a professional coaching committee member of the Sports Council. This field experience has greatly helped me deeply understand human rights issues and institutional challenges occurring in the sports field. The purpose of establishing the Sports Ethics Center is focused on 'ensuring fairness in sports and protecting the human rights of athletes.' Based on my past experiences, I will do my best to fully reflect the voices from the field and become a Sports Ethics Center that both athletes and coaches can trust."

What is currently Acting Director Han's biggest concern? He emphasized prevention above all else. Acting Director Han said, "Indeed, trust and fairness are my biggest concerns. The number of reports surged from 600 cases the year before last to 1,200 cases last year. While personnel are limited, the workload is increasing. Sometimes, when case processing is delayed or results do not meet expectations, complaints come from both the reporter and the accused."

He continued, "My top priority is to create an environment where anyone can engage in sports activities with peace of mind in the sports field. I believe that prevention is key before investigation. While it is important to conduct thorough investigations after an incident occurs, awareness education to prevent human rights violations from happening in the first place is the top priority. Especially, young athletes are often placed in a blind spot for human rights violations. Coaches, parents, and athletes on the field must clearly understand 'what constitutes a human rights violation,' and the culture itself must change. Only then will the number of reports decrease and a virtuous cycle be established in the sports world. Despite the difficult environment, including a frozen budget, we are actively consulting with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to develop practical measures, such as segmenting prevention education content and strengthening the dispatch of human rights protection officers."

How does Acting Director Han view the main causes and structural problems of corruption and human rights violations? He said, "I believe that human rights violations and sports corruption in the sports world stem from environmental factors and existing practices rather than the deviance of an individual. Since each sport has its own characteristics and it has been done this way for a long time, the perception that there is no problem has become a practice, leading to a structure where this is repeated. The important thing is that we must go beyond simply improving these practices; we must establish clear standards and systems that everyone can agree on and recognize, and change through them. The perception of fairness and ethics has now become an important value for many people. The Center also promises to do its best to develop sports and protect the weak in line with the people's expectations to bring about these changes."

He further added, "I believe that institutional improvements and shifts in awareness to create a proper sports environment must be created together by the Center and all athletes. We need to establish a proper ethical consciousness based on the essential value of sports, fairness, and ensure that athletes, coaches, and all sports organization staff on the field recognize the importance of human rights and make efforts to practice them. The Center aims to play its role so that these efforts yield greater effects on the field and allow more athletes to devote themselves to sports activities in a safe sports environment. The Center is conducting strict investigations in accordance with regulations and procedures. Not stopping there, we are carrying out various forms of projects that can provide practical help, such as victim support systems. At the same time, through surveys on the status of athletes, we will listen to the voices of athletes on the field and frequently supplement institutional deficiencies to contribute to the protection of athletes."

Acting Director Han also emphasized, "I believe that the competitiveness of sports comes from fairness and trust. Therefore, I believe a shift in perception is needed, recognizing that fairness is no longer a choice but a basic requirement. In any situation, trust based on regulations and principles must be the foundation for building a proper sports culture. Athletes must not remain silent when they are treated unfairly or witness such acts; coaches must do their best to guide athletes with a sense of responsibility; and referees must maintain independence and judge fairly in any situation. In sports administration, transparency must be maintained through clear standards and systems that anyone can accept. Based on this, I believe we must play a responsible role so that everyone can compete in a fair environment."

Finally, regarding the ultimate values or goals the Center should achieve, he said, "I believe the ultimate goal the Sports Ethics Center should strive for is to create a fair sports environment where anyone can engage in sports activities with respect and safety in the sports field. It is important to establish a culture where athletes, coaches, and sports officials all respect human rights and where the inherent values of sports, fairness and trust, are upheld. To this end, I believe the Center should continuously pursue the values of preventing violence and corruption, protecting victims, and enhancing trust throughout the sports world through fair and swift investigations."

Meanwhile, the Sports Ethics Center was established in August 2020 under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as a public institutional investor based on Article 18, Paragraph 3 of the National Sports Promotion Act, to ensure fairness in sports and protect the human rights of athletes. According to Article 18, Paragraph 4, Item 1 of the National Sports Promotion Act, anyone can report to the Sports Ethics Center upon learning that an incident corresponding to human rights violations in the sports world or sports corruption has occurred. When reports are received regarding human rights violations and corruption in the entire sports world, including the Korean Sports Council, the Korean Paralympic Committee, school sports teams, provincial and municipal sports councils, and professional sports, investigations and follow-up actions are conducted. First, an investigator is assigned, and after investigating the reporter, victims, witnesses, and the accused, the Deliberation Committee decides on disciplinary actions or referrals for investigation. Thereafter, if the Center requests disciplinary action, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism notifies the relevant organization, and disciplinary action is taken. Additionally, the Center carries out various projects to protect the rights and interests of athletes, including mandatory legal education on the prevention of sexual harassment and sexual violence, a disciplinary information system that can issue certificates confirming disciplinary facts, dispatching human rights protection officers and victim support projects to regularly monitor human rights violations occurring in the sports field, and surveys for policy formulation.

Furthermore, the Center provides customized education that is easily accessible to everyone by segmenting and producing educational content for the mandatory legal education on the prevention of sexual harassment and sexual violence, which all former athletes must take once a year. In addition to the online education site 'Sports Ethics Run,' the Center dispatches its own human rights instructors directly to the field to conduct education offline to enhance the convenience of education. The Center focuses on resolving blind spots for human rights violations by dispatching human rights protection officers to competitions such as the National Sports Festival and national team selection trials for each sport.

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*This content was translated by AI.