SEOUL, 10 January 2004 — International Olympic Committee Vice-President Kim Un-yong, under investigation for alleged corruption, resigned from Parliament yesterday and quit the leadership of Taekwondo’s world governing body.
Kim, 72, has been summoned by prosecutors twice for questioning and an arrest warrant is expected to be issued soon. “I have decided to quit as parliamentarian, World Taekwondo Federation president and Taekwondo Training Center chief,” Kim told reporters in Seoul. He said he felt “responsible for lots of troubles related to my sports diplomacy”.
In a statement later, he said he would “frankly admit to having committed wrongdoing”, but declined to explain the nature of his irregularities. Prosecutors are seeking an arrest warrant for Kim, one of South Korea’s most powerful sports leaders, next week for embezzlement and bribery charges, Yonhap news agency reported.
He is suspected of accepting over 500 million won ($419,000) from businessmen in return for his efforts to get them seats on the Korean Olympic Committee. He is also suspected of embezzling billions of won donated by businesses to his World Taekwondo Federation, Yonhap reported.
Kim has admitted that he had raised $2.6 million to finance his campaign for the 2001 IOC presidential election, Yonhap said. Investigators found $1.5 million at his home during a recent raid, part of which Kim said came from businessmen to finance his failed campaign. Investigators said Kim also claimed under questioning that part of the foreign currency cache was destined for North Korea in return for Pyongyang’s agreement to inter-Korean sports exchanges. Prosecutors say Kim’s claims are hard to verify as it is virtually impossible for South Korea to question North Korean authorities.
Last month, prosecutors arrested Lee Kwang-Tae, a former Korea Olympic Committee (KOC) member who was in office from November 2000 to July 2002, for alleged corruption. Lee was indicted on Monday.
