Yoo Seung Min resigns if it is true that the chairman of the Korean Sports Council is suspected of incentives for game-winners
Oct 29, 2025
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Yoo Seung Min, chairman of the Korea Sports and Tourism Committee, said in a parliamentary audit (general audit) of the National Assembly on the 29th that he would resign if the allegations related to the police investigation into the donation incentives were confirmed to be true when he was the head of the Korea Table Tennis Association.
Ahead of the comprehensive audit, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's financial crime investigation team reportedly booked Chairman Yoo on charges of breach of duty the night before and is investigating him. This comes after civic groups such as the Sports Citizens' Solidarity and the Cultural Solidarity filed a complaint with the police in July against illegal receipt of donation incentives during Yoo's tenure as president of the Korea Table Tennis Association. It is argued that the incentive payment in violation of the regulations caused property damage to the association when Chairman Yoo operated an incentive system to pay 10% of the bid to promote the attraction of donations while he was president of the Table Tennis Association. In particular, while Chairman Yoo's younger brother A is known to have received 200 million won in incentives, police are expected to check whether Chairman Yoo took the incentives under a borrowed name. In April, the Sports Ethics Center under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism ruled that the Korea Table Tennis Association's incentive payment of 10% of the detention fund was in violation of the rules of executives of sports organizations that `executives cannot be paid' and demanded disciplinary action against former and current executives and employees, and the association ordered Chairman Yoo to be held responsible for negligence in management and supervision.
At a comprehensive parliamentary audit on the day, Chairman Yoo said, "If the allegations turn out to be true regarding illegal rebates, I will take responsibility and resign." "The article from yesterday evening is different from the truth. I haven't heard from the police yet, and I've never provided my financial records." When Rep. Cho pressed "Will you quit if you are indicted on related charges", he responded "I will quit if I am prosecuted".
While reference persons such as A are known to have already been investigated by the police, Chairman Yoo said "I haven't received a single penny regarding incentives. I can say it confidently. I will faithfully respond to the police investigation, and I will wait and see the results. We hope that the results of the investigation will come out as soon as possible." Controversy over incentives, which had been hot throughout the presidential election of the Korea Table Tennis Association and the Korea Sports Association last year, has continued for more than a year since Yoo took office. A police investigation is needed as soon as possible to cover up suspicions. Chairman Yoo said, `I was elected with the trust and support of athletes who wanted to change and innovate the sports world. If there is a fault, I think you should take responsibility. I have no intention of sticking to my seat. Reasons for disqualification from executives, such as a 'penalty penalty or more', are meaningless. He said he would resign if he was found to have received incentives.'
Reporter Jeon Young-ji sky4us@sportschosun.com
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
