S. Korean Olympic champion accuses coach of sex assault

South Korea’s double Olympic short track gold medallist Shim Suk-hee has accused her former coach -- already convicted and jailed for repeatedly beating her over many years -- of sexual assault, her lawyer said yesterday. Shim filed her complaint against Cho Jae-beom to police last month, on the same day she testified at his appeal against a 10-month jail sentence for physically assaulting her.

Aged 21, the elite athlete has four Olympic medals to her name, including relay golds at both Sochi 2014 and on home ice at last year’s Pyeongchang Games. Shim told police that her coach sexually violated her from the age of 17 until last January, a month before the Olympics, her lawyer said.

“This is a grave crime that our society should not overlook,” Im Sang-hyeok said. Some of the incidents took place at government-managed sports training centres, he added, demonstrating how vulnerable sports players can be to loopholes in the state management system.