Former soccer player Yoo Yeon-soo, paralyzed from the waist down by a drunk driver, "The perpetrator has not apologized to this day."

Former Jeju United FC soccer player Yoo Yeon-soo revealed how he had to retire after becoming paralyzed from the waist down due to an accident caused by a car while drunk.

Former soccer player Yoo Yeon-soo appeared as a guest on tvN's 'You Quiz on the Block' (hereinafter referred to as 'You Quiz'), which aired on the 17th.

On this day, Yoo Yeon-soo told the story of having to retire due to an accident caused by a drunk driver. He said, "I was getting some fresh air with three other players, including myself. Someone woke me up and I woke up, but there was no movement below my chest. I thought it was a dream. Even though my thoracic spine was broken, I didn't feel any pain and got into the ambulance. From that moment on, my back was in pain." “I felt like I was being stabbed with a knife. I don’t remember some of the details, but I was in the intensive care unit,” he recalled.

After hearing from my doctor that I wouldn't be able to walk for the rest of my life, I thought, "Why is it me out of all those people?" and "I lived a good life, but why did I go through so much trouble to become a pro?" Yoo Jae-seok, who heard this, expressed his anger, saying, "I feel so angry when I think of the perpetrator. At the time, it was known to be a drunk driving accident and many people were outraged. The perpetrator's blood alcohol level exceeded the level for license cancellation."

In the early morning of October 18, 2023, he was hit by a drunk driver in downtown Seogwipo and suffered serious injuries. The perpetrator, driver A, had a blood alcohol level at the level that would have resulted in his license being revoked. In the accident, Yoo Yeon-soo suffered paralysis from the waist down and nerve and muscle dysfunction, and spent about a year in rehabilitation treatment, but retired at the age of 25 on November 8, 2023.

Yoo Yeon-soo, who has not said a word of apology to the perpetrator until now, said, "They say he tried to apologize to us at the trial, but in fact, there were many ways he could have apologized. But in reality, we have never been contacted. If he came and knelt and apologized, I would still accept it. “I was willing to give it to him, but he was so angry,” he said.

Yoo Yeon-soo, who said he received a lot of help from Koo Ja-cheol while preparing for the trial, said, "I appointed a lawyer, but since I was in the hospital, I couldn't pay much attention. I think Ja-cheol found out around me and secretly helped me with petitions, etc. On the day of the trial, the lawyer I originally hired was Ja-cheol Koo. “I didn’t go there,” he explained. He then expressed his gratitude to Koo Ja-cheol, saying, "If Koo Ja-cheol's lawyer had not gone, the trial would have been held as a 32-week patient with 'general injury' anterior displacement. I am now paralyzed from the waist down." Regarding the punishment the perpetrator received, Yoo Yeon-soo added, "I heard that he was sentenced to 5 years in prison. I heard that it was not just my case, but that he also received 5 years for the drunken molestation case."

Yoo Yeon-soo set a new goal. After the accident, when the doctor recommended exercise, he thought, "(At first) I've been exercising for 16 years, why should I exercise again?" However, during rehabilitation, he found fun playing table tennis with his father. Yoo Yeon-soo expressed his aspirations, saying, “My goal is the Paralympic Games.”

Ten Asia Reporter Lee Ha-neul greenworld@tenasia.co.kr