Ryu Seung-min, former head of the Korea Table Tennis Association, on Jan. 14 pumps his fist after being elected president of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee at Olympic Hall of Olympic Park in Seoul's Songpa-gu District. (Yonhap News)

By Park Hye Ri

Ryu Seung-min, former head of the Korea Table Tennis Association (KTTA), is the newest president of the Korean Sports & Olympic Committee (KSOC).

In an election on the afternoon of Jan 14 at Olympic Hall of Olympic Park in Seoul's Songpa-gu District, Ryu won 417 of 1,209 votes to edge outgoing President Lee Kee-heung by 38 votes.

Winning the gold medal in men's singles table tennis at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Ryu was elected to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes' Commission at the 2016 Rio Games, helping raise the global status of Korean sports during his eight-year term. He was also named KTTA president in May 2019 and held the post through September last year.

On the same day, Ryu spoke on the phone with IOC President Thomas Bach and pledged to continue close cooperation.

After offering his congratulations, Bach proposed meeting Ryu soon in Lausanne, Switzerland, and continuing their close working relationship with the IOC going forward.

To serve from Jan. 28 through February 2029, Ryu will lead Korea at international sporting events like the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy (Milan and Cortino d'Ampezzo) and Asian Games in Japan (Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya), 2027 FISU Summer World University Games in Daejeon, Sejong and the provinces of Chungcheongbuk-do and Chungcheongnam-do in Korea and 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

He is also expected to play a role in resolving major issues in sports such as stimulating exercise in daily life and promoting sports at schools, as well as propose a vision for the future of sports in Korea.

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