"I think the atmosphere is dampened."
Pepper Savings Bank said, "This is the third season since its foundation, but every season is the worst. It is not an exaggeration to say that this is the worst season we have had so far. Until we won 3-2 at the Korea Expressway Corporation on the 23rd, we had 23 consecutive wins, the most in women's history, and failed to secure victory for more than 100 days. This season, we have only 10 points, 3 wins and 28 losses. The lowest rank has already been confirmed for the first three consecutive seasons in the women's team.
Expectations for Pepper Savings Bank this season have been higher than any other season. It has acquired Captain Park Jung-ah of the women's volleyball team for a three-year total of 2.32 billion won. In addition, KGC Ginseng Corporation currently the head of the association has acquired outside heater Chae Sun-ah from 100 million won nine million won a year, 1,000 options for a three-year total of 300 million won. It has signed a three-year contract with Hibbit outside heater Lee Han-bi for a total of 1.06 billion won 800 million won a year, 260 million options and Rivero Oh Ji-young for a total of 1 billion won 700 million won a year, 300 million options. It has invested a huge amount of over 4.6 billion won.
There was no investment effect at all. However, not only the performance but also the performance was below expectations. Fans also sighed at Pepper Savings Bank's poor performance.
Against this backdrop, news broke that veteran libero Oh Ji-young was forced to leave the team at the end of the season. Suspicions of bullying against junior players B and C surfaced, and the team reported the case through the Korea Volleyball Federation's KOVO Player Complaint Handling Center through its own investigation. The KOVO Reward and Punishment Committee imposed severe punishment on Oh Ji-young by suspending her qualification for one year after two meetings on July 23 and 27.
KOVO said, "We confirmed that Oh Ji-young committed human rights violations, such as harassment and verbal abuse against his teammates, and decided as follows. The Reward and Punishment Committee decided to impose a one-year suspension on Oh Ji-young in accordance with Article 10 1 4 of the Athletes' Human Rights Protection Committee Regulations, Article 10 1 1 and 5 of the Reward and Punishment Regulations, and Article 11 4 and 5 of the Standards for the Imposition of Sanctions General in attached Table 1 of the Reward and Punishment Regulations.
After the announcement of the results of the reward and punishment committee, Pepper Savings Bank issued an apology and announced the termination of Oh Ji-young's contract. Pepper Savings Bank said, "First of all, I apologize for the concern caused to the fans, the Korea Volleyball Federation, and the volleyball officials who care about the Pepper Savings Bank due to the unsavory incident within the team. After an internal investigation found out that Oh's human rights violation was committed, Pepper Savings Bank immediately excluded him from the team and reported it to the Volleyball Federation. It humbly accepted the result of the punishment committee's disciplinary action and decided to terminate the contract with Oh Ji-young as of today. In the future, the club will do its best to protect the rights and interests of the players and prevent the recurrence of such incidents. Once again, I apologize for the inconvenience caused."
He also broke up with coach Joe Trinzie on the afternoon of the 28th. On the evening of the 25th, a media outlet reported that he was breaking up with Trinzie, and Pepper Savings Bank announced the cancellation of the contract with Trinzie after completing the remaining paperwork.
Pepper Savings Bank said, "After much consideration for the team's atmosphere reform and rapid preparation for next season, the contract was terminated under mutual agreement with Trinzee. Until the next coach is appointed, senior coach Lee Kyung-soo will lead the team as acting coach," adding, "The team will do its best to normalize the team by starting the process of appointing the next coach as soon as possible. I will not forget the days I spent with Trinzee, and I wish him and his family the best for the future."
Acting coach Lee Kyung-soo, who will replace Trinzie and lead the remaining five-game team, is his third as an acting coach. When he was the coach of KB Insurance in the 2020-21 season, he replaced Lee Sang-ryul as an acting coach. He also acted as an acting coach after voluntary resignation of Kim Hyung-sil last season. It is unusual for him to take the acting coach position three times.
In place of manager Kim Hyung-sil, he led Pepper Savings Bank from the second half of the second round to the end of the season. His performance was not good. He won five games and 21 losses with 13 points. Nevertheless, he displayed his potential by playing against other teams with persistence that he never gave up and with his firm tactics. The team also had a good evaluation of acting coach Lee Kyung-soo. However, the situation is completely different from the previous season. He cannot afford to focus solely on matches.
"In the case of last season, I was an acting coach after the opening 10 games," said acting coach Lee Kyung-soo, who had a telephone conversation with a reporter on Sunday evening. During the game, I was able to meet certain demands. However, now I cannot even touch anything. I do not have much time. I just need to match what players can do well."
The mood of the team would be crazy. He posted a disgraceful record of 23 consecutive losses, and as soon as he escaped the 23-game losing streak, Oh Ji-young was suspected of bullying his junior players, terminated his contract, and even the coach left.
"The atmosphere of the players' training is not bad, but it is true that they are depressed. I think the players can get agitated, too. My performance was not good, but the coach left right after I won. This is my third time as an acting coach, and it's very hard," Lee said.
"I haven't said good-bye to him yet. I think I'll say good-bye to him when the return date is set. For now, I'm waiting to say good-bye to him." Coach John Grossman, who Trinzee brought in, will stay with Pepper Savings Bank for the rest of the season.
Regarding Oh Ji-young's alleged harassment, he cautiously said, "No one is talking about it or bringing it up. It's a sensitive issue." 토토
The team will play a match against IBK Industrial Bank of Korea at home in Gwangju today Sept. 29. Pepper Savings Bank should present its best performance in concert with players.
"I thought that the departure of the foreign coach would greatly affect foreign players. However, he has been training hard. Yasmeen's physical condition is not as bad as that he cannot afford to play. I will do my best with the remaining players and IBK Industrial Bank of Korea as well," said acting president Lee Kyung-soo.