Figure skater Cha Jun-hwan inspired by Olympic champion to pursue IOC membership

January 22, 2025

Figure skater Cha Jun-hwan said Tuesday he was inspired by an Olympic champion and a former member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to chase his own dreams of joining the top Olympic body.

Cha returned home Tuesday after winning the bronze medal at the Winter World University Games in Turin, Italy, last week.

On Jan. 13, just days prior to the competition in Italy, Cha submitted to the Korea Skating Union his application to run for the IOC Athletes’ Commission election during the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. Further details on next year’s election are expected to be announced by the IOC sometime next month.

The Athletes’ Commission has had two South Korean members: 2004 Olympic taekwondo champion Moon Dae-sung (2008-16) and 2004 Olympic table tennis gold medalist Ryu Seung-min (2016-24).

Cha, 23, said Tuesday he was inspired by Ryu, recently elected as head of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC), to follow in the former table tennis star’s footsteps. The two crossed paths while Cha was working on the bidding committee for the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics.

“I had a chance to give a presentation in Lausanne, Switzerland, and I reached out to him for some assistance,” Cha told reporters at Incheon International Airport. “We had a chance to talk at length about different things. That’s when I started harboring my own dreams of becoming an IOC member. And once an opportunity came up, I decided to apply for it.

“It’s an honor just to have this opportunity,” Cha continued. “I have a long ways to go, but I am working hard for it.”

Cha is the most accomplished male figure skater ever for South Korea with unmatched credentials.

He captured silver at the 2023 world championships, becoming the first South Korean man to medal at the top competition. Chan also won the 2022 Four Continents title and grabbed bronze at the same event two years later. He was the bronze medalist at the 2018-19 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final and has six Grand Prix medals to his credit.

According to the IOC, the mission of the Athletes’ Commission is to represent fellow athletes and support their development in their sporting and nonsporting careers.

Athlete members serve an eight-year term, but otherwise have the same responsibilities and rights as other IOC members.

The candidate must be able to communicate effectively in English or French, the two official working languages of the IOC. Cha spent his early years training in Toronto with famed coach Brian Orser and is fluent in English.

As for what he’d like to accomplish if he is elected, Cha said: “I can’t reveal my plans at the moment. But I will try to be the bridge between the IOC and the athletes.”

Earlier Tuesday, another South Korean Olympian entered the race, with 2018 Olympic bobsleigh silver medalist Won Yun-jong submitting his application. The KSOC must decide which one of the two will represent the country in the election.

“I will just try to do the best I can from my position,” Cha said, in response to a question on what can separate him from Won.

The Athletes’ Commission is made up of a maximum 23 members, with up to 12 athletes elected by their peers at the Olympics and up to 11 additional members appointed by the IOC president.

All 23 must have either participated in the Olympics at the time of their election or appointment, or in the previous edition of the Olympics.

Cha finished fifth in the men’s singles at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games and will try to qualify for the 2026 event.

Ahead of the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, LPGA Hall of Famer Park In-bee was chosen as the South Korean candidate after beating out four other hopefuls. Park, however, came up short in the election.