S Korea short track champion suspended for 2 months, Beijing appearance in doubt

SEOUL : South Korea's double Olympic short track gold medallist Shim Suk-hee has been suspended for two months over remarks she made about coaches and teammates, which may bar her from competing at the Beijing Winter Olympics, the Korea Skating Union said on Tuesday.

A KSU spokesperson said Shim could appeal with the Korea Sport & Olympic Committee or seek a court injunction to find a way to compete in Beijing.

The Korea Sport & Olympic Committee's disciplinary meeting is scheduled for Jan. 14, according to the KSU official.

Shim and her agency were not immediately available for comment.

The disciplinary committee's decision comes after the KSU concluded a separate probe into race-fixing allegations against Shim earlier this month.

In that probe, investigators said they could not find any evidence of Shim's wrongdoing and there was no concrete evidence that she had intended to take down a team mate during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Games.

In October, Shim was excluded from training with the national team amid a probe into text messages exchanged between her and a coach during the 2018 Games that she might have tried to create a "female Steven Bradbury" if things were not going her way.

Australian Bradbury won gold in the men's 1,000m at the 2002 Winter Olympics after all the other competitors crashed at the last turn.

The Winter Olympics run from Feb. 4-20.