"The Medal Doesn't Matter; I Only Wanted the Military Exemption": After Winning Gold, Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in, Who "Maintained Their Dignity," Are Back in the Spotlight

[Financial News] Reckless remarks about military-service exemptions by some members of the men's football team at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games have sparked public outrage in South Korea. As criticism mounts that they reduced the significance of a gold medal won while representing the country to a personal means of avoiding military service, the mature comments made by Son Heung-min (LAFC) and Lee Kang-in (Atlético Madrid) after winning titles at previous editions of the same tournament have been brought back into the spotlight. The controversy is also fueling a broader social debate over whether the exemption system should be abolished.
The controversy erupted over the players' words and actions immediately after they won the gold medal. Lee Gi-hyuk of Gangwon, the team's captain, waved his medal during a post-match television interview and cheered, "I won't be going to the military." Yang Min-hyeok of KVC Westerlo was also criticized after saying, "Medals and trophies aren't important. I played only for the one reward: a military-service exemption." Park Seung-soo of Newcastle United Football Club further inflamed public anger by posting a photo on social media of himself wearing a digitally composited military discharge cap.
The players' flippant remarks struck a raw nerve among men in their 20s currently fulfilling their mandatory military service, as well as young people more broadly. Public attention quickly turned to comparisons with the attitudes of senior players who had won gold medals in the past.
Son Heung-min, who won a gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games, was asked at the time about the military-service special exemption. He emphasized the significance of representing the national team, saying, "We came to this tournament to win, rather than for anything like that, and that was the first thing I emphasized to the players. Representing the Republic of Korea is an honor. Whenever I see the Taegeukgi, I am deeply moved, and I even tear up when I hear the national anthem." Lee Kang-in, who led South Korea to a third consecutive title at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, likewise showed consideration for his peers who were quietly fulfilling their military duty. He said, "It is true that this has made it easier to continue my career, but since it is a duty that every Korean man must fulfill, I have no particular thoughts about it."
The incident, which contrasted sharply with the senior players' mature attitudes, was also covered by major foreign media outlets. The Daily Telegraph reported, "The captain of South Korea's football team faced a fierce backlash from fans and politicians after proudly mentioning his military exemption immediately after winning the Asian Games." Japan's Cocokara also reported, "South Korea's national team, which won the tournament for the fourth consecutive time, became the target of fierce criticism at home."
The fallout is rapidly expanding beyond criticism of individual players into calls to abolish the military-service special-exemption system for sports personnel.
The arts and sports military-service special-exemption system, introduced in 1973, has been maintained on the grounds of enhancing national prestige. However, critics have repeatedly argued that it no longer fits the current environment, marked by a shortage of active-duty personnel due to the sharply declining birth rate and heightened public sensitivity over fairness in military service.
Political parties on both sides of the aisle have also moved to comprehensively review the system and pursue legislation to abolish it. An official from the National Assembly's National Defense Committee said, "Now that an attitude prioritizing personal military exemption over the public status of representing the national team has been revealed, the grounds for maintaining the current system have disappeared. We must promptly discuss either substantially tightening the criteria for alternative service for sports personnel or abolishing the system altogether."




[email protected] Moon Young-jin Reporter