PyeongChang organizers appoint interim head

[July 23, 2014]  (Reuters) - The head of the South Korea Olympic Committee will step in to take over interim leadership of the 2018 PyeongChang Games following the surprise resignation of two senior officials.

Kim Jung-haeng will take charge until a full-time replacement is found for Kim Jin-sun, who abruptly resigned as president of the committee on Monday in the middle of a review by the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI).

An official at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism denied the BAI review was the reason behind Kim Jin-sun's resignation, which followed the exit of the vice president and secretary general of the committee, Moon Dong-hoo, who quit earlier this month.

Kim Jung-haeng, 70, assumed power as the most senior of the six vice presidents remaining on the organizing committee for the country's first Winter Olympics, the Yonhap News Agency reported on Wednesday.

He will be briefed on how preparations are going on Thursday.

In May, the International Olympic Committee heaped praise on Kim Jin-sun, who headed the failed bids to host the 2010 and 2014 Games, for his preparation work.

They did also urge for the organizing committee to focus more on marketing, venue construction, test events and Games service in the next six months.

(Writing by Patrick Johnston; editing by Amlan Chakraborty)

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