At the 2024 Paris Olympics, there's a 60-player field competing at Le Golf National for gold, silver and bronze medals in an event that's only played once every four years. There's no prize money to the winner -- or to any player in the field, for that matter. All that matters is getting on the medal stand.
However, for South Koreans Tom Kim and Byeong Hun An, there's even more motivation to get on the medal stand.
Korean men are required to serve in their military, regardless of profession or societal status, except for those with certain achievements. While Korean golfers may be able to put off having to serve in the military during their active careers -- particularly if they're playing at the highest level of the game -- they are almost certain to have to eventually return home and spend 20 months in the military. This is typically required at a time in life when golfers are at the peak of their abilities, so the idea of taking nearly two years away from their job to serve in the military is a tough pill to swallow, even for national pride.
The Olympics, though, provides a way for Kim and An to become exempt from South Korean military conscription.
Any Korean man who earns a medal in the Olympics -- gold, silver or bronze -- becomes exempt from military service. It doesn't matter the color, so long as they're on the medal stand. For Kim and An, then, they have additional motivation to get in that top three come Sunday at Le Golf National.
Two of their compatriots, Sungjae Im and Si Woo Kim, managed to earn an exemption another way last fall by earning a team gold medal in the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, in 2023.
Sang-moon Bae is among the male Korean golfers on the PGA Tour who have been forced to interrupt their professional golf careers in the name of serving the national interest in the Republic of Korea. Fortunately for Im and Kim, they will be able to continue their careers unabated with this victory in the Asian Games. An and Kim could join them with medals in Paris.
