Judo coach who announced resignation never submitted formal letter

Jeong Seong-suk, head coach of South Korea's women's judo national team, publicly announced her resignation over poor athlete management at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games — but never actually submitted a formal resignation letter, according to reports.

News1 reported Tuesday, citing a Korea Judo Association official, that Jeong announced her intention to resign on Oct. 13 but had not submitted any formal paperwork as of that day. A performance improvement committee meeting to discuss whether to renew her contract was held Friday while her status remained unresolved.

The controversy stems from the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games last month, where Jeong's handling of the team contributed to judoka Jeong Su-jin being disqualified from the women's 48-kilogram category. Jeong Su-jin had passed the official weigh-in but was found to be 100 grams over the weight limit during a random pre-bout check ahead of the round of 16.

Jeong Su-jin said she passed the official weigh-in on Monday but was incorrectly told by coaching staff that she was not subject to an additional weigh-in and ate food as a result.

She said she was only informed that she was required to undergo the additional weigh-in 15 minutes before it closed, and despite rushing to cut weight, she was ultimately unable to compete.

On Oct. 4, Jeong Su-jin went public on social media with her account of the incident, raising concerns about the coaching staff's management of athletes, including Coach Jeong. She also alleged that Jeong had attempted to cover up the matter.

Jeong returned from the World Championships on Oct. 13 and announced her intention to step down, saying, "All responsibility lies with the coaching staff." By not following through with formal resignation procedures, however, she will serve out the full two-year term of her contract, which expires Oct. 31.

The Korea Judo Association announced Friday that it would not renew Jeong's contract. The association said that while contract renewals are normally decided through a performance review, Jeong had effectively forfeited her chance at renewal by announcing her intention to resign.

"It seems she used the word 'resignation' to mean she would step down from the head coach position," a Korea Judo Association official said. "We can't very well ask why she hasn't submitted a resignation letter after saying she would resign. Whether she resigns or simply leaves when her contract expires doesn't make much of a difference."