Court grants figure skater injunction to pause ban over sexual harassment charges

A Seoul court on Tuesday granted an injunction sought by figure skater Lee Hae-in to pause a three-year ban issued by the national skating federation over sexual harassment charges.

The Seoul Eastern District Court sided with Lee, who is now eligible to compete.

Lee, the 2023 world silver medalist, was suspended for three years by the Korea Skating Union (KSU) in June, with the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) confirming it two months later, over an incident that took place during a national team training camp in Italy in May.

Lee, 19, was accused of sexually harassing an underage male teammate. But she countered that there could not be any grounds for sexual harassment because she and the teammate, whose identity has been withheld, were in a romantic relationship. Lee also claimed that the KSU had deemed physical contact between the skaters to be abusive in nature because it hadn't been aware of Lee's relationship status.

The KSOC rejected Lee's appeal, citing the age of Lee's boyfriend and other circumstances.

Lee then took the matter to the Seoul court, which ruled on Tuesday that her action with the male skater did not constitute sexual harassment, even though he was under 16 years of age at the time.

"By definition, sexual harassment causes a sense of sexual humiliation and revulsion, and infringes on the victim's sexual freedom," the court said. "Just because an adult performed an act of affection toward someone under the age of 16, it doesn't mean such an act can be regarded as harassment."

Lee thanked the court for its ruling and her fans for their support.

"I deeply regret my inappropriate conduct as an athlete representing the country," Lee said. "Now that I've been given one last chance, I will make sure something like this doesn't ever happen again and I will focus on my training."

Lee plans to enter a national competition scheduled to begin Nov. 28.

Lee won silver in the women's singles at the 2023 world championships, becoming the first South Korean woman to grab a world championship medal since Kim Yu-na won gold in 2013. Also in 2023, Lee won the women's singles title at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, making her the first South Korean champion since Kim in 2009. (Yonhap)