Tokyo Olympics: Korean shooter calls gold medal-winning rival a 'terrorist'

The most successful individual in Olympics shooting history has labelled it ‘pure nonsense” that a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has been allowed to compete in Tokyo Olympics, as per a report by Business Insider. Jin Jong-oh, a Korean shooter who, in 2012, won gold and recently competed at Tokyo, reckoned that it was ludicrous that an IRGC member was allowed in the summer games. Jin did not stop at it and went on to label Javad Foroughi as a “terrorist”. 

"How can a terrorist win first place? That's the most absurd and ridiculous thing," Jong-oh told reporters at Seoul Airport on arriving home from Tokyo. 

What is the IRGC?

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces, founded after the Iranian Revolution on 22 April 1979 by order of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Tasked with carrying “shadowy missions” and suppressing dissent in the Islamic Republic, the elite troops only report to the supreme leader. In 2019, the US, under Donald Trump’s Administration, classified it as a terrorist organization. According to Business Insider, some of IRGC’S force of approximately 125,000 troops are commandos who supply and train militants around the region, and their operatives have been linked to terror attacks like the 1983 bombings of the US embassy and Marine barracks in Beirut.

Jong-oh failed to make it past the qualification stage at the Tokyo Games. On the other hand, Javad Foroughi won gold in the 10-meter air pistol event, beating Serbia's Damir Mikec and China's Wei Pang. Previously, United for Navid, a campaign group set up after the execution of Iranian wrestler Navid Afkari criticized the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for allowing Foroughi to compete.

"We consider the awarding of an Olympic gold medal to Iran marksman Javad Foroughi not only a catastrophe for Iranian sports but also for the international community, and especially the reputation of the IOC. The 41-year old Foroughi is a current and longtime member of a terrorist organization," it said in a statement. "The IRGC has a history of violence and killing not only of Iranian people and protesters there, but also innocent people in Syria, Iraq and Lebanon. It is a designated foreign terrorist organization by the United States. We call for an immediate investigation by the IOC, and until an investigation is completed the suspension of any medal award." it further added. 

Image: Cadlilac/AP