Short track national team member Hwang Dae-heon, 26, offered a position on the controversy involving Lian Xiaojun (Im Hyo-jun), 29.
Through his agency, Hwang Dae-heon said on the 6th, "Because content that is not true is being taken as fact, I judged that silence was fueling misunderstanding," adding, "I want to set the record straight."
In June 2019, Hwang Dae-heon filed a complaint accusing then-teammate Im Hyo-jun of forcibly molesting him by pulling down his pants. Im was fined in the first trial but was acquitted in the second and third trials.
However, Im Hyo-jun received a one-year suspension from the Korea Skating Union over the incident at the time and chose to naturalize as a Chinese citizen before his acquittal was finalized.
Regarding the incident, Hwang Dae-heon explained, "Im Hyo-jun suddenly ran over and yanked down my pants and underwear," adding, "There were female skaters and underage skaters around us."
He continued, "It is true that my body was exposed to the point of feeling humiliated because Im Hyo-jun pulled down my pants and underwear," and added, "We weren't only among men, and pulling down not just pants but even underwear crossed a line in my view. I felt extremely humiliated and flustered."
Hwang Dae-heon said, "I thought Im Hyo-jun would apologize, but instead he called my name and danced to mock me," adding, "It felt like he was ignoring and ridiculing me, so I went back to the dorm."
Hwang Dae-heon claims that although Im Hyo-jun later apologized for his actions, he immediately demanded a signature on a "statement of confirmation" after the apology ended.
Hwang Dae-heon explained, "Im Hyo-jun apologized, saying he was sorry, in a meeting with the Goyang City Hall coach, the national team coach, and our parents present, and I said, 'If you are sincere, I'm okay too.'"
However, "As soon as I finished speaking, Im Hyo-jun demanded a signature on a statement of confirmation containing phrases such as 'accepted the apology and reconciled,'" and added, "Hwang Dae-heon's parents objected and got up to leave, and it was hard to accept Im Hyo-jun's apology as sincere."
Hwang Dae-heon said, "It shouldn't have come to this, and it is unfortunate that it has become an irreversible situation," adding, "I hope we can clear up the misunderstandings and compete in a good spirit."
Hwang Dae-heon also addressed the so-called "team kill" allegations from the 2023–2024 season International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup and world championships.
At the time, Hwang Dae-heon committed a foul against Park Ji-won, and Park missed two gold medals at the world championships, losing the chance for automatic national team selection.
Hwang Dae-heon said, "I am very competitive and I tend to attempt aggressive passes, but I have never intended to harm anyone on purpose," adding, "Given the nature of short track, it is impossible to skate without any contact or collisions." He added, "I will work to avoid any room for misunderstanding."