*This content was translated by AI.
The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee and nine member sport federations residing in the Seoul Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium are preparing to resume their return to office space to end the ongoing restriction on access that has lasted over 50 days. With damages accumulating due to the sports administration vacuum, the committee plans to pursue legal countermeasures including state compensation claims against the Election Management Commission and criminal complaints.
According to the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee on the 24th, employees of the nine member sport federations residing in the Handball Gymnasium have been unable to return to their original offices for nearly two months since June 5. Major office equipment and work materials remain trapped inside the offices, forcing them to set up temporary spaces and barely maintain minimum operations such as accounting.
Administrative disruptions are spreading throughout the sports community. Operations for domestic and international tournaments, support for national team athletes, management of coach qualifications, and international exchange activities have come to a standstill, causing delays in preparations for the upcoming 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Summer Asian Games. In particular, civil administrative services such as the issuance of competition performance certificates, which are essential for university admissions and employment, are delayed, inflicting direct harm on athletes, students, coaches, and the general public.
Until now, the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee has continued emergency responses including securing temporary office space and consulting with relevant institutional investors, but it has determined that such temporary measures have reached their limits in performing normal sports administration. The committee maintains that only a return of member sport federations to their original offices to resume normal work can serve as a fundamental solution.
To prevent unnecessary on-site clashes during the re-entry process, the Sports Committee is conducting prior consultations with relevant institutional investors while requesting cooperation for safety and order maintenance. It also urged the government and relevant institutional investors to promptly prepare practical and responsible solutions so that athletes can return to their workplaces as soon as possible.
The committee also warned of a tough legal response. Based on legal review results, it plans to tally the scale of damages for each member sport federation before taking concrete legal action.
Korean Sport & Olympic Committee President Yoo Seung-min emphasized, "Athletes are not the parties responsible for this incident but the biggest victims," and stated, "We will no longer overlook the sacrifices and damages suffered by athletes." He further announced that Yoo (Chairman) will pursue state compensation claims against the Election Management Commission regarding damages incurred during the installation and management of ballot counting centers, and will firmly take all possible civil and criminal legal measures, including criminal complaints and damage claims, against acts that continuously obstruct access to office spaces, to protect the rights and interests of athletes until the end.
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*This content was translated by AI.
