"Is it true that if I win a medal at the Olympics, I am exempt from military service and I am also eligible for special housing?
As Korean athletes achieve good results one after another at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, interest in the Olympics is growing, and there is a controversy among young people over the system that provides special housing benefits to medalists.
Those who placed 3rd or higher in the Olympic Games, International Skills Olympic Games, and World Championships will be eligible for special housing supply in accordance with the 'Rules on Housing Supply' of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
National housing is specially supplied on the basis of one house per household within the range of 10% of the construction amount, and may exceed 10% if approved by the Mayor/Do Governor.
Private housing with an area of 85 m² or less can receive special supply in the range of 10%, based on one house per household, and if approved by the Mayor/Do Governor, it will be expanded to 15% in the metropolitan area and 20% in other areas.
It is argued that this is inconsistent with equity.
The logic is whether it is appropriate to give special supply benefits as a reward for personal achievement in a situation where the value of promoting national prestige in these competitions is lower than in the past and the housing shortage is intensifying.
Mo (29) Kim, an office worker, said, "Medalists already receive a lot of benefits, including bounties and pensions, and men are exempt from military service, but it is too much to even qualify for a special housing supply. It is seen as an example.”
Kim said, "It is no exaggeration to say that the dream of all young Koreans these days is to own a house, and as there are constant debates about fairness related to this, it is necessary to adjust the medal benefits."
Even in the online community where young people gather, there were many reactions such as "It is absurd that even professional players who have already earned billions of salaries receive housing-related benefits" and "Special supply qualification is outdated".
On the other hand, there are also many opinions that it is appropriate to provide more than a certain amount of benefits to medalists.
Mo (26) Yoon, an office worker, said, "I think that medalists can receive unprecedented rewards as they only exercised for the rest of their lives and raised their national prestige by participating in the name of their country." said.
Some say that winning a prize in international competitions such as the Olympics and raising social interest will have economic effects such as revitalization of the sports industry, and that the concept of lifestyle sports will be established and contribute to public health.
Han Seung-baek, a professor of physical education at Hallym University, said, “In the past, there was no sports market itself, so the only way for sports players to generate profits was through national awards. There is no structure,” he said.
Professor Han said, "Each sports association needs to work hard to create a market that can attract fans and corporate sponsorship rather than relying on the state to reward players on the pretext of promoting national prestige, which has lost its meaning."said