Winter Games 2018: South Korea Olympic Chair Cho Yang-ho Resigns

The head of South Korea’s 2018 Winter Olympics organizing committee, Cho Yang-ho, has resigned.

Cho Yang-ho said he wanted to focus on “urgent matters” with his business group, which includes the struggling Hanjin Shipping carrier, the Yonhap news agency reports.

Hanjin Shipping, South Korea’s largest shipper by assets, is facing severe financial difficulties and Cho Yang-ho needed to focus his efforts on restructuring and stabilizing the company.

Photo LA Times

Cho Yang-ho is the chairman of the Hanjin conglomerate, which also controls the nation’s flag carrier Korean Air, a corporate sponsor of the 2018 Games.

According to reports, Cho Yang-ho, who took on the role in 2014, was nearing the end of his two-year term.

The Winter Games are due to take place in Pyeongchang in February 2018.

In March, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it was confident South Korea’s preparations were “moving in the right direction”.

Cho Yang-ho said he had “truly put forward my very best efforts to work with every member of the organizing committee to prepare a successful Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in 2018.”

He said he would “continue to support Pyeongchang through to the Games in 2018”.

In April, Hanjin Shipping said it would ask creditor banks to restructure its debt. It had debt of 5.6 trillion won ($4.92 billion) and a debt-to-equity ratio of nearly 850 percent as at the end of 2015, according to the company.