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(Sports) Former commerce minister elected as new Pyeongchang Olympics head

Xinhua, May 12, 2016 Adjust font size:

Former Commerce Minister Lee Hee-beom was elected as new head of South Korea's first Winter Olympics on Thursday.

Lee was elected unanimously as the new president of the Pyeongchang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (POCOG) at the committee's general assembly in Seoul. The 67-year-old replaces Cho Yang-ho, chairman of Hanjin Group, who abruptly resigned last week to concentrate on corporate affairs.

Lee's appointment will need final approval by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, although this is seen merely as an administrative formality.

The incoming chairman is a long-time bureaucrat and corporate executive with little experience in sports administration. He served as an adviser for Pyeongchang's Olympic bidding committee in 2006, and then as the head of the bidding committee for the Gwangju Summer Universiade in 2008. After Pyeongchang won the bid for the 2018 Olympics, Lee also served as a consultant for the POCOG.

After his election, Lee told reporters he's aware of concerns over his lack of network in sports but stressed he is determined to make the most of his limited experience in the field.

"Having worked as a consultant for the POCOG, I have a clear idea of Pyeongchang's Olympic preparations," he said. "I may still be a novice in the field, but I will try to make sure South Korea's status in the international sports community doesn't suffer."

Lee said he will attend the International Olympic Committee's Executive Board meeting from June 1-3 in Lausanne, Switzerland, and will also seek to establish relationships with international federations of winter Olympic sports. Endit