The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee has nominated Kim Dae-nyeon, current head of the Election Advisory Committee, as its new secretary general.

The committee announced that it plans to officially appoint nominee Kim following consultations with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and approval from the board of directors, in accordance with relevant regulations.

Kim served in various roles at the National Election Commission, including public relations officer, director of the Election Training Institute, director of the Election Management Office, director-general for planning and management, and deputy secretary-general, before serving as secretary-general at the cabinet-minister level from November 2016 until his retirement in September 2018.

During his tenure as secretary-general of the National Election Commission, he oversaw the 19th presidential election and the 7th simultaneous local elections.

The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee noted that this marks the first time a former cabinet-level public official will assume the position of secretary general.

The committee introduced Kim by stating, "Nominee Kim has handled practical tasks across all areas of public institution management for about 30 years, including organizational planning, budget and personnel management, external cooperation, and education and training. His strengths lie in his mediation skills, having stably led large organizations while finding common ground on sharply contested issues."

Kim built ties with the sports committee by serving as the chair of the Election Management Committee for the 41st (2021) and 42nd (2025) terms, and has participated in the institution's reform process since last year as the chair of the Election System Improvement Committee.

The committee stated, "Although he is an outsider, nominee Kim is evaluated as someone who can immediately step into the role, given his deep understanding of the sports committee's organizational structure and decision-making procedures, the realities facing member organizations, and overall pending issues in the sports sector."

It added, "We expect nominee Kim to enhance transparency and accountability in organizational operations based on the administrative expertise and mediation skills he accumulated in public service, while strengthening communication with member organizations and the sports field. He will play an important role in stably establishing the sports administration system and smoothly driving change and innovation."

President Yoo Seung-min said, "Nominee Kim possesses proven administrative capabilities through his long public service career, and he is someone who understands the organization and the field more deeply than anyone else through his work with the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee. We expect him to play a major role in developing the sports committee into a more transparent and trusted organization, and in faithfully reflecting the diverse voices of the sports field in policies and administration."

The sports committee has appointed a new secretary general two months after former Secretary General Kim Na-mi stepped down in May following a controversy over inappropriate remarks made to the family of a middle school boxing athlete who fell unconscious due to an accident during a tournament.

(Photo provided by the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee, Yonhap News)