S. Korea's U-23 football coach quits with leukemia

Lee Kwang-jong, who coached South Korea's under-23 men's football team to the gold medal at last year's Asian Games, has stepped down to deal with leukemia, officials said.
  

The Korea Football Association said late Thursday it convened a technical committee meeting and named Shin Tae-yong, an assistant coach on the senior national team, as Lee's replacement.
 

The KFA said Lee, 50, was recently diagnosed with an acute form of leukemia. It also said Shin's replacement on the senior national team will be named at a later date.
  

With Lee at the helm, South Korea defeated North Korea for the gold medal at the Asian Games in Incheon, west of Seoul, last October. It was South Korea's first Asiad gold in men's football since 1986. The team went undefeated in three group matches and four knockout matches, scoring 13 goals and giving up none.
  

Lee was subsequently named the head coach for the 2016 Summer Olympics. South Korea must finish in the top three at next year's AFC U-23 Championship to qualify for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
  

On Jan. 22, Lee flew to Thailand with the U-22 national team for the King's Cup tournament but returned home seven days later with a high fever. Lee was later diagnosed with leukemia and informed the KFA on Tuesday.
  

Lee had been coaching South Korean youth teams in different age groups since 2000 and had put together a solid track record. He served as the head coach of the U-15 team from 2002 to 2003, while doubling as the senior assistant on the U-20 team from 2002 to 2005.
  

In 2008, Lee led the U-16 team to the runner-up finish at the AFC U-16 Championship. The following year, Lee took over the U-17 squad and coached the team to the quarterfinals at the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup, the country's best performance in 22 years.
  

Under Lee's tutelage, South Korea finished third at the AFC U-19 Championship in 2010 and reached the round of 16 at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2011.
  

Lee finally won his first international trophy at the 2012 AFC U-19 Championship. Then at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in July 2013, Lee coached South Korea to the quarterfinals.
  

Lee was appointed the U-23 head coach in November 2013, and delivered the Asian Games gold the following year. On Friday, an official with the KFA said the national governing body is considering bringing Lee back as a coach in some capacity after he's healed.
  

"Our contract with Lee has expired but the KFA will continue to support him," the official said. "Since he came down with the illness while serving as the coach for the Olympic team, the KFA also has a responsibility (to take care of Lee). Considering his contribution to South Korean football, we're preparing measures to provide support for him."
  

With a different coach on board, South Korea's qualification for the 2016 AFC U-23 Championship is scheduled to start next month in Indonesia. South Korea has been paired with Indonesia, Timor-Leste and Brunei in Group H and must finish in first place to reach the U-23 Championship next year.
  

The KFA explained that it had little time to waste with the key qualifying matches on the horizon, as Shin, 44, takes the reins.
  

As an assistant to Uli Stielike, Shin helped South Korea to the runner-up finish at the AFC Asian Cup last month in Australia. A two-time MVP for Seongnam in the top-flight K League, Shin coached the same Seongnam club to the AFC Champions League title in 2010 and to the FA Cup title in 2011. (Yonhap)