South Korean LPGA golfer Park In-bee speaks with Yonhap News Agency after arriving at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris on July 22, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
PARIS, Jul. 23 (Korea Bizwire) — Running for a seat on an International Olympic Committee (IOC) body dedicated to representing athletes’ voices, South Korean golfer Park In-bee has arrived in Paris to launch her election campaign in earnest.
The LPGA Hall of Famer landed at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport on Monday night, decked out in a “Team Korea” polo shirt. She will be vying for one of four spots opening up on the IOC Athletes’ Commission.
Four athletes from four different sports will be elected by their peers during the Paris Olympics, which begins Friday. The voting results will be unveiled on Aug. 7.
Members of the Athletes’ Commission will serve an eight-year term, and have the same functions and responsibilities as other members. One of the outgoing members this year is South Korean Olympic table tennis champion Ryu Seung-min.
Park, the 2016 Olympic gold medalist and a seven-time LPGA major champion, had been scheduled to travel to France last week but postponed her trip by a few days because she was battling flu-like symptoms.
Park told Yonhap News Agency that she was feeling much better.
“I tried to get as much rest as possible on the plane,” Park said. “I will tour the athletes’ village tomorrow and meet some athletes.”
Park announced her pregnancy on July 12, her 36th birthday, and said she is expecting her second child later this year. She acknowledged that campaigning while pregnant will present some physical challenges.
“There may be some days when I won’t feel great, and I will have to be efficient with my campaign plans,” Park said. “I will have to see what the weather conditions are like and figure out how much I can do. I will try to meet as many athletes as possible.”
Park was chosen as the South Korean candidate for the commission in August 2023, beating out other accomplished athletes, such as four-time Olympic shooting champion Jin Jong-oh and volleyball legend Kim Yeon-koung.
“It’s been about a year since I became the candidate, and now that I’ve arrived here, I feel like this is getting started for real,” Park said. “It feels a bit strange to come to an Olympic host city without my golf bag. But I am excited about meeting athletes starting tomorrow.”
In addition to Ryu, South Korea has two other IOC members: Kim Jae-youl, president of the International Skating Union, and Lee Kee-heung, head of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee.
(Yonhap)
