Moon stripped of doctorate over plagiarism

Kookmin University stripped Moon Dae-sung, a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and a Saeunuri Party lawmaker, of his doctor’s degree in sports psychology last month, weeks after concluding that his thesis was plagiarized, an official from the school told The Korea Times on Tuesday.

“The school revoked Moon’s degree on March 6,” the official said, adding that the school has kept this information from the media until now.

It remains to be seen whether the IOC will reopen its investigation into Moon, who won a gold medal at the Athens Olympics in Taekwondo to determine whether he can retain his membership of the IOC’s athletes’ council.

Concluding a two-year investigation, an ethics panel at Kookmin concluded that Moon’s 2007 thesis, “Effect of Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation on Flexibility and Isokinetic Muscle Strength in Taekwondo Practitioners,” was “seriously plagiarized.”

It took time for Kookmin to revoke Moon’s degree because the process required a separate discussion from the graduate school directors at the school’s department of physical education, according to the Kookmin official. Kookmin earlier confirmed that the results of its investigation on Moon were sent to the IOC on March 27.

The IOC conducted its own investigation into Moon’s academic credentials before shelving it in December, citing the lack of a conclusive statement from Kookmin. IOC President Thomas Bach then said the ethics investigation on Moon could be reopened if “new elements emerge.’’

Moon recently rejoined the conservative Saenuri Party, which he was kicked out of in 2012 amid mounting criticism. By Jung Min-ho The korea times