Korean Judo Association plans to apologize and confirm facts regarding Sujin Su-jin's disqualification at Asian Games weigh-in

After the national team returns home, check the facts closely.

(Nagoya = Yonhap News) Reporter Kyung-yoon Kim = The Korean Judo Association apologized for the disqualification of Jeong Soo-jin (Yongin University) during the weigh-in at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

The Korean Judo Association said in a press release on the 5th, "We are deeply aware of the seriousness of Su-jin Jeong's personal statement and the content being raised regarding her elimination from the weigh-in," and "More than anything, we feel very sorry for the situation in which Su-jin Jeong was unable to compete in the competition, and we offer our deepest condolences for the emotional difficulties she must have experienced during this process."

He added, "We sincerely apologize for causing great concern to Judo practitioners and the public. The national team is currently participating in the World Championships, so we plan to closely check the relevant facts after the team returns to Korea."

He also said, "With this incident as an opportunity, we will conduct an overall inspection of the national team's athlete management and international competition operation system. In particular, we will closely examine problems that may arise at the competition site, such as the confirmation and delivery system for weigh-in subjects and reporting and communication procedures between athletes and coaches, and prepare necessary improvement measures to prevent similar cases from occurring again."

On the 4th, Jeong Soo-jin posted a post to the effect that the disqualification at the Asian Games weigh-in was a mistake by the national team leader.

Jeong Soo-jin was eliminated after failing to pass the random weigh-in in the morning ahead of the round of 16 in the women's 48kg judo match against Aliya Muminova (Tajikistan) held at the Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, Japan on the 30th of last month.

Jeong Soo-jin said, "I set my weight on the day of the game, but after the manager and coach checked the results of the weigh-in draw, I told them that I was not subject to the weigh-in, so I ate food. Afterwards, I found out that I was subject to the weigh-in 15 minutes before the end of the weigh-in, and because of this, I was unable to play in the match."

He also revealed, "After this incident occurred, the coach was busy guiding the remaining players, leaving only the message that he would take responsibility after returning to Korea, and a lot of criticism was poured out on me. This morning, when I returned to Korea, the coach told me that only if it ends like this can it end quietly."

In a phone call with Yonhap News, head coach of the national judo team, Jeong Sung-sook, acknowledged that it was “our mistake,” saying, “A situation that should not have happened occurred due to our mistake.”

He added, “I apologized to the player, and it appears that a misunderstanding occurred during the conversation.”