A senior Japanese sports official who also serves as vice president of the Japan Olympic Committee used an anti-Korean racial slur during an internal meeting in February, according to reports published May 11 by Japanese outlet Slow News and subsequently covered by Korean media.
Takahiro Kitano, chairman of the Japan Bobsleigh, Luge and Skeleton Federation and JOC vice president, made the remarks at a February meeting held shortly after Japan's men's bobsled team missed qualification for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics due to an administrative error on the federation's part.
According to the report, a director identified as "A," who was then in charge of competitive performance, proposed reforms to the athlete support system following the qualification failure. Kitano dismissed the proposal with personal attacks: "You analyzed nothing. You had no plan. You should be ashamed to be in sports."
He then added, in effect, that "looking at results and analyzing them is something any idiot or chon can do." The word he used—チョン (chon, 조센징)—is a widely recognized Japanese ethnic slur for Koreans, both ethnic Koreans in Japan (Zainichi) and Koreans generally. It is not the kind of term that gets said accidentally in a professional meeting.
The timing makes the remarks particularly striking. Kitano had visited South Korea just last month, meeting with the 2018 PyeongChang Memorial Foundation to discuss expanded cooperation around the PyeongChang Sliding Centre. But federation insiders say he has long made his hostility toward Korea clear internally, frequently stating "Korea cannot be trusted."
At the February meeting, when director A suggested strengthening ties with Korea and other Asian countries as a path forward after the Olympic qualification failure, Kitano reportedly dismissed the idea outright. Back in 2020, when COVID-19 forced the federation to cancel its annual European training camps, training in Korea was proposed as an alternative. That plan was also reportedly blocked by Kitano.
Kitano has chaired the federation since 2012—now 14 years running. The federation's own bylaws cap the term at 12 years, but he has remained in place without explanation. He concurrently serves as a JOC vice president, giving his remarks added weight and visibility.
Reaction inside Japanese sports circles has been pointed. Some observers note the behavior "runs counter to the JOC's historical role in advancing winter sports across Asia" and that "rather than taking responsibility for the federation's Olympic qualification failure, the chairman is privatizing the organization through discriminatory remarks."
Neither the Japan Bobsleigh, Luge and Skeleton Federation nor the Japan Olympic Committee has issued an official statement in response to the allegations. The silence is notable given the JOC's stated commitment to Olympic values of respect and inclusion.
The incident reflects deeper tensions. Japan-Korea relations have improved diplomatically in recent years as both countries face shared security challenges from North Korea and navigate US-China competition. But historical grievances and casual discrimination persist, particularly in settings where public accountability is limited.
In Korea, as across dynamic Asian economies, cultural exports and technological leadership reshape global perceptions—even as security tensions persist. Yet incidents like this serve as reminders that soft power gains and diplomatic rapprochement don't automatically translate into changed attitudes at institutional levels.
For South Korea, the episode is particularly galling because it involves an official who publicly advocates cooperation while privately expressing contempt. Korean media coverage has focused on the hypocrisy: Kitano visiting Korea for partnership talks in April, then learning he had used slurs against Koreans internally just weeks earlier.
The JOC's silence may reflect internal debate about how to respond. Dismissing Kitano would acknowledge the severity of the remarks but could trigger broader scrutiny of how long he's remained in power beyond term limits. Defending him is untenable. The likeliest outcome is a quiet resignation packaged as unrelated to the controversy.
What the incident underscores is the gap between official Japan-Korea cooperation and the persistence of discriminatory attitudes in institutional settings. Sports federations, corporate boards, and government ministries can maintain formal partnerships while individual leaders harbor and express prejudice. Until accountability mechanisms extend to private settings, diplomatic progress will remain incomplete.
