At the 2014 and 2018 Winter Olympics, South Korean speed skater Shim Suk-hee stepped onto the podium with her teammates for gold medals. Fast-forward to 2022, and things have drastically changed for Shim ahead of next month's Winter Olympics in Beijing.
Fast-forward to 2022, and things have drastically changed for Shim ahead of next month's Winter Olympics in Beijing. The short-track speed skater was barred from training in October last year after a series of text messages she sent were leaked, causing controversy in her native country.After two months of investigations, a Korea Skating Union committee announced December 21 it was suspending Shim from the national team for two months, saying she had"marred the dignity of athletes.
Shim's legal representative, who is unauthorized to speak on the record, told CNN that they had argued in court whether it was fair to include the content of personal text messages in the duty of a national athlete to maintain dignity. Shim celebrates her bronze medal for the Short Track Women's 1,000m at the Sochi 2014 Winter Games.