No gold, no military escape hatch

When South Korea lost to a team of Japanese amateurs in men’s baseball Saturday, the young Koreans lost more than just a game and a gold medal. They lost a golden opportunity to receive exemptions on their mandatory military service.

The 10-7 loss to Japan at the Asian Games took Korea out of contention for the gold medal. For baseball players who have not yet served their two-year military obligation, there are three exemptions available: win an Olympic bronze medal, reach the semifinals at the World Baseball Classic, or win a gold medal at the Asian Games. Usually, because the competition is weaker than that of the Olympics or World Classic, winning an Asiad gold medal is considered the easiest of the three routes. The Korean Baseball Organization even front-loaded the roster with young players; 14 players on the 22-man roster for the Doha Asian Games could have earned military exemptions with a gold medal. Following losses to Chinese Taipei and Japan, the best Korea can do now is to win bronze by beating the Philippines, Thailand and China. A medal is a medal, but bronze is not what the players had in mind. “I don’t have much to say about our loss. We did our best,” said infielder Lee Dae-ho after the loss to Chinese Taipei. He is one of the 14 who needed the gold medal in Doha to be exempted from military duty. The whole team had little to say after the dramatic loss to Japan, which came on a ninth-inning home run. The Korean players left the venue without stopping for interviews. The only comment manager Kim Jae-park had for public consumption was that he had no comment. In the court of public opinion, players and team officials may not receive much sympathy for failure to receive the exemption. Serving in the armed forces is a duty, and the Korean league already dealt with a image-damaging scandal two years ago when some players were found to have forged medical records to get off the hook from the military service. by Yoo Jee-ho