*This content was translated by AI.
Former Japanese freestyle ski national team member Kondo Kokone has revealed that she was subjected to harassment, exclusion, and abuse ("power harassment") by team officials during her athletic career.
Japan's "Daily Sports" reported on the 24th that "Kondo exposed on her Instagram the harms she endured before and during the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, stating 'I have reached my limit of endurance' to express her feelings."
According to the report, Kondo pointed out that inappropriate remarks belittling athletes' efforts were made during a "concussion prevention and response training" session held during team boarding training at Choi Geun (CEO), criticizing it as "not aligned with the educational purpose of discussing injury response methods." She also revealed that some of the cyberbullying she experienced during forced withdrawals from world championships and Olympic absences came from teammates, coaches, and trainers she had considered friends.
In particular, Kondo exposed that she was subjected to abuse by the national team trainer during the Milan Olympics. After it was confirmed just before the competition that she would be unable to compete due to injury, she received not a single treatment from the national team, claiming that only medical staff affiliated with the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) supported and cared for her until the end.
Kondo revealed that the decisive reason for her retirement decision last June was: "I felt I had no choice but to leave, as staying here would kill my spirit." She added, "I hope to become a team where we do not trample on each other but respect one another," and conveyed, "I mustered the courage not out of simple criticism, but with the hope that the Japanese freestyle ski community will positively change so that junior athletes' efforts are rewarded."
Meanwhile, Kondo suffered a serious injury on February 5 during official practice just before the Milan Olympics main event, falling and rupturing her left knee's anterior cruciate ligament. She prepared to compete until just before the slopestyle start on the 7th but ultimately withdrew and also missed the big air event.
She had also been unable to compete in the 2022 Beijing Olympics due to a right knee injury just prior, experiencing the misfortune of missing two consecutive Olympic appearances. Shortly after withdrawing from the Milan competition, she was also subjected to severe cyberbullying on social media.
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*This content was translated by AI.
