The head of Japan’s winter sports federation is under fire after a leaked audio recording revealed he used a derogatory term for Koreans and hurled insults during an internal meeting. The official, who also serves as vice president of the Japan Olympic Committee (JOC), has sparked a controversy that extends beyond the sports world.
According to a report by Japanese media outlet “Slow News” on May 11 (Korean time), the recording captures Takahiro Kitano, president of the Japan Bobsleigh, Luge, and Skeleton Federation, making offensive remarks during a closed-door meeting in February.
The incident occurred after the Japanese men’s bobsleigh team missed out on qualification for the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics due to an administrative error by the federation. During a meeting to discuss countermeasures, a director in charge of performance enhancement (identified as “A”) proposed improvements to athlete support and organizational operations. This prompted a sudden change in atmosphere.
![[사진] 대한대한봅슬레이스켈레톤경기연맹 소셜 미디어](https://wilbrahamauto.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/1e5ce21cb0d4.webp)
Kitano reportedly interrupted the discussion and aggressively blamed Director A, saying, “This meeting is for you to reflect. There was no analysis, no plan.”
The controversy deepened when Kitano allegedly stated, “Even a fool or a ‘Chosenjin’ could analyze results and make plans.” The term “Chosenjin” is a highly derogatory expression used in Japan to demean Korean and ethnic Korean people, widely recognized as racist in international sports circles.
Other executives present at the meeting reportedly did nothing to stop the outburst.
Further fueling the uproar is Kitano’s past behavior. Last month, he visited the 2018 PyeongChang Memorial Foundation to discuss using the PyeongChang Sliding Center and potential cooperation. However, internal federation sources told Slow News that Kitano frequently expressed distrust toward Korea and viewed any collaboration negatively. Some team members openly said, “The president dislikes Korea, so cooperation is difficult.”
Director A, a sports science expert, had argued that Japan should expand collaboration with Asian nations, including South Korea, to enhance competitiveness—a stance Kitano rejected.
Kitano has served as federation president since 2012, exceeding the term limit of 12 years set by the federation’s own regulations.
Criticism is mounting within Japan’s sports community. Local experts pointed out, “This behavior completely contradicts the trend of advancing winter sports in Asia. The leader responsible for the Olympic qualification failure is instead sabotaging the organization’s atmosphere with discriminatory remarks.”
Slow News reported that it requested official responses from both the Japanese federation and the JOC but received no comment by the time of publication.
