Six top South Korean athletes will vie for the candidacy for membership in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) next year, looking to fill the vacancy after table tennis legend Ryu Seung-min’s term ends next year.

According to the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC), the application window for the IOC Athletes' Commission membership closed Friday evening with Oh Jin-hyek, a two-time Olympic archery champion and Kim So-yeong, a  women's doubles badminton bronze medalist joining the race. 

The two will be competing against four Olympians who had already applied for the position on Thursday: volleyball legend Kim Yeon-koung, titan in women's golf, LPGA Hall of Famer Park In-bee, Taekwondo athlete Lee Dae-hoon and golden shooter Jin Jong-oh. 

All candidates must have experience as an Olympian or have qualified for the upcoming Olympics in the same year as the election to be eligible.  

The KSOC will conduct document screening and interview the six athletes for three weeks to make a decision on the final candidate they will recommend to the IOC by September 1.  

The election is scheduled to take place during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.