South Korean swimmer Hwang Sun-woo (20, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province) is under police investigation for a collision while driving a car, but the Korean Swimming Federation explained the incident and said that he will not be disqualified from the national team.
“Although Hwang Sun-woo was involved in a traffic accident, there was no wrongdoing such as drunk driving or hit-and-run,” the federation said, adding, “According to the Korean Sports Federation’s national team selection and operation regulations, this incident does not fall under any of the reasons for disqualification (such as drunk driving, gambling, violence and human rights violations), so the athlete will not be disqualified from the national team.”
According to the federation and police, Hwang Sun-woo was driving his car back to the athletes’ village at around 7:45 p.m. on March 13 when he hit a pedestrian who was crossing the street in a non-crosswalk area. At the time of the incident, Hwang was unaware of the accident because he thought he had avoided the passerby, and when he returned to the scene, no one was there and no traces of the accident remained, so he reportedly returned to the athletes’ village.
“After arriving at the parking lot of the athletes’ village accommodation, Hwang Sun-woo was very surprised to see that the side view mirror of his car was open, and he asked a senior member of the national team to drive him back to the accident site in his senior’s car,” the federation said. “At this time, he personally explained the circumstances of the accident to the police who arrived at the scene and returned to the athletes’ village. The athlete was then accompanied by his parents and reached an amicable settlement on the morning of the 14th with the bystander who wanted to make amends. He will comply with the request to appear for the upcoming police investigation.”
“Although there were some shortcomings in our immediate follow-up and response as Hwang Sun-woo has only been driving for a few months, there was no evidence of drunk driving or fraudulent attempts to escape after the accident,” he added, emphasizing that the athlete is deeply remorseful for the situation that occurred due to his carelessness.” 파워볼사이트