South Korean Olympic swimming gold medalist Park Tae-hwan, serving an extended suspension following a positive drug test, was decidedly non-committal about his future on Friday.
Facing the press for the first time since getting slapped with an 18-month ban by FINA, the international swimming federation, earlier this week, Park said it was premature to talk about competing in the future.
Park said he was so devastated about the positive test last year that he briefly contemplated retirement but added it was “inappropriate” for him to talk about his future after disappointing so many people.
“I think it’s important for me to first apologize to the people I’ve let down and take time for some self-introspection,” Park said. “Swimming is everything to me. It’s all I’ve ever done and not being able to compete is hugely shocking. It’s as if my whole life has been taken away from me in an instant. It makes it difficult for me to think about retirement at this point.”
FINA collected Park’s samples on Sept. 3 last year and the suspension began retroactively on that day. It ends on March 2, 2016, which theoretically gives Park time to get ready for the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August that same year.
However, a local rule instituted last year by the Korean Olympic Committee may prevent Park from swimming in Rio. The rule states that an athlete who has served a drug-related suspension of any length is ineligible for national teams for three years, starting with the end of the suspension.
The KOC has hinted it may look into amending the rule to allow Park to compete after all, but the swimmer himself said he wasn’t looking that far down the road.
“If I am ever given the opportunity to race at the Olympics, then I will endure whatever rigorous training that lies ahead,”
Park said. “But I think it’s not appropriate for me to talk about my Olympic participation. I’ve let down so many people, and I believe it’s only right for me to take plenty of time to reflect on myself.”
Park added that he will try to give back to the people who’ve supported him through thick and thin.
“I realize clearly that everything I’ve accomplished as a swimmer must not be taken for granted,” he said. “I understand how precious my career has been, and I will spend time serving the community. My objective is not to become an Olympian or to win medals. It is to become someone who’s not ashamed of himself.” (Yonhap)
