Oh Ji-young, who was suspended by the Korea Volleyball Federation (KOVO) for one year on charges of continuing to harass his team's juniors, and his contract with Pepper Savings Bank was also terminated, heralding a court battle.
Jung Min-hoe, a lawyer at the law firm Ium, Oh Ji-young's legal representative, said on the 28th, "I intend to calmly and carefully follow the process of revealing the injustice regardless of whether he or she retires or not, with future retrial and litigation procedures in mind."
The KOVO Reward and Punishment Committee said on the 27th, "It was found that Oh Ji-young had bullied her junior since June last year, and two juniors left the team. Various evidence confirmed that Oh Ji-young's human rights violations, including bullying and verbal abuse," and suspended Oh Ji-young for one year.
In response, Oh revealed the Kakao Talk conversation between Oh and the victims, saying, "Oh Ji-young and A were in a relationship where their credibility was guaranteed. They were more like sisters than seniors and juniors." Regarding victim B, he said, "We are far from B, so harassment itself is not established."
According to Oh Ji-young's side, Oh Ji-young and A chatted through Kakao Talk on October 30 last year, saying, "I miss you already" (Oh Ji-young), "Me, too. I keep thinking of good memories (A player), "I think I'm so lucky to have a friend like you" (Oh Ji-young), "Of course. We can't be like this." (A player) "I support you. This is not the end. Let's get along well together." (Oh Ji-young).
Oh Ji-young reprimanded A when non-mainstream players A and B went out in violation of bylaws on the day when the main players played away games in the same month and caused a car accident.
"According to the coach's decision, Pepper Savings Bank waits for non-mainstream players at the training site or lodging, not at the stadium," Oh Ji-young said. "A non-mainstream player who did not go to the stadium had to leave the training site during the game, and senior players asked him not to go out while the game was in progress." However, A went out and a car accident happened. Upon hearing the news of the car accident, senior players including Oh Ji-young were in conflict while asking questions to the players who caused the accident, and I understand that A and B left the team in the process."
"In October, we only warned the junior players to blame them in order to promote unity among team members and prevent conflicts, but there is no fact that we have bullied the players or blamed the junior players for no legitimate purpose or reason," he said. "If such an act becomes an object that should be criticized socially and legally, the concept of seniority, seniority, and seniority in the workplace will no longer exist in Korean society." 스포츠토토
Oh Ji-young confirmed the petitioner's claim for the first time at the first reward and punishment committee on the 23rd, Oh Ji-young said. "There was absolutely not enough time to prepare the rebuttal material and I didn't get enough opportunity to explain it," she said, requesting a retrial to the KOVO reward and punishment committee and preparing other legal actions.
Oh Ji-young plans to submit an application for retrial to KOVO on April 29. She is also expected to file a lawsuit against the club to confirm the nullification of the contract as she signed a three-year contract worth a total of 1 billion won with Pepper Savings Bank in April 2023 and has one year left until the end of the one-year suspension of her qualification.
