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South Korean volleyball twin stars Lee Jae-yeong and Lee Da-yeong have been dismissed from the national women's team on Feb. 15 after admitting to their bullying pasts.
Former teammates in middle school targeted
The 24-year-olds confessed to accusations of bullying, including physical, verbal, and emotional abuse towards their former teammates in middle school.
According to SCMP, at least four former middle school teammates have come forward with allegations that the twins had taken advantage of their status as star players since 10 years ago to verbally and physically abuse them back in school.
They have been banned from the national team by the Korean Volleyball Association (KVA) until further notice, Yonhap reported.
The sisters have also been suspended by Heungkuk Life Insurance Pink Spiders, the professional team which they play for in South Korea's V-League.
Allegations of bullying by former teammates
One of their former teammates from middle school listed 21 instances of misconduct by the twins, SCMP wrote.
In one instance, one of the twins had allegedly held a knife to threaten another a teammate when they refused to run an errand for her at night.
In another incident, one of the twins had hit her victim in the mouth so hard that her glasses flew off her nose, after she had apparently not cheered loudly enough for the team.
According to the post, the twins often physically abused their teammates, and extorted money from them to buy snacks as well.
"Many years have passed but I am still suffering from the trauma. But the abusers, with their smiles, feature on various TV programmes," the former teammate wrote in her post.
Fans reacted angrily, called for permanent ban of twins from national team
The national stars were widely popular in South Korea prior to the allegations, appearing in various national television programmes and commercials, including a KIA Motors TV commercial, according to SCMP.
However, after the post went viral on social media, many fans reacted angrily, with calls for the KVA to permanently ban the twins from the national team.
The online outrage prompted the twins to take to social media to apologise for their past actions as well.
Lee Da-yeong posted an apology on Instagram, saying that she was sorry for those who were hurt by her actions.
Huge blow for national team, but important to send strong message about bullying
The twins had played key roles in clinching a qualifying spot for South Korea at the Tokyo Olympics, with Lee Jae-yeong as the captain of the team at the Asian qualifying tournament.
Cho Yong-goo, the secretary general of the KVA, said on Feb. 16 that this bullying scandal will also become an obstacle for them if they wish to pursue a coaching career in future, Yonhap noted.
The absence of the twins will be a huge blow for the women's team, in terms of their chance in winning a medal at the Tokyo Olympics, admitted Cho.
However, the official stressed that the association felt the need to send a strong message that national team athletes will be severely punished for misconduct, and prevent similar incidents from happening in future.
The Korean Volleyball Federation (KOVO), which runs South Korea's professional V-League, also announced that it will be issuing lifetime bans from the pro league on athletes with a history of bullying in school.
Currently, only players who have committed sexual misconduct face permanent bans, but this will be due to change at a later date when the federation amends its rules at a board of governors meeting, to include bullying in that category, reported Yonhap.
Top image via KOVO, Lee Da-yeong's Instagram