New Delhi: Upset at not being given accreditation to be part of the Indian archery team for the Paris Olympics, renowned South Korean coach Baek Woong Ki said he felt “humiliated and insulted” and wanted to end his tenure as head coach of the Indian team.

To make matters worse, Woong Ki, who reached Paris with the Indian team after overseeing preparation in Marseille, is staying in a Paris hotel awaiting his Games accreditation while the Archery Association of India (AAI) has been asking the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to find a way to accommodate him in the contingent.

However, Woong Ki has now been asked to come back to India and his flight has been booked for Saturday evening, it has been learnt. The Korean coach, who guided archery giants South Korea to two gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics, is learnt to have told AAI that it was “humiliating and insulting” to be treated this way by authorities.

His contract with the Indian team expires after the Paris Olympics on August 30. “I do not want to continue anymore. I just want to go back to South Korea,” Woong Ki told HT from Paris.

“I have been preparing with the goal of helping India win a medal for the first time at the Paris Olympics. However, I believe that appointing a foreign coach but excluding (me) from the Olympic Games archery coach is a big mistake by the IOA and a decision that does not follow the original plan and goals,” he said.

“Paris Olympics is India’s best chance to win a medal in archery. It is very unfortunate that I cannot be with the team right now. I can only send messages to the team and I have told them what they should be doing during the tournament. I hope the Indian archers win a medal at the Olympics,” said Woong Ki.

The Korean coach said he should have been the first coach on board with the team. “We have been training hard to win a medal but at a very important stage (Olympics), I am not appointed coach,” he said.

AAI had sent a list of six coaching staff led by Woong Ki to be part of the Indian contingent. The squad of six archers, cleared by IOA and the union sports ministry, however, accommodated two Indian coaches Sonam T Shering Bhutia (for men) and Purnima Mahato (for women), physio Arvind Yadav and psychologist Gayatri Aditya Madkekar. The two Indian coaches have been given accreditation to stay in the Games Village while the two support staff will get ‘P category’ cards and stay in the hotel.

HT highlighted on Thursday that Woong Ki’s name has been struck down. An AAI official said they have reached out to IOA officials but no solution has been found. IOA has cleared 68 coaches and 50 support staff for 117 athletes. The 256-member Indian contingent has several personal coaches and support staff in many disciplines like wrestling, table tennis and badminton which has increased the squad.

After 2012, this is the first time both the Indian men’s and women’s archery teams have qualified for the Olympics. They will be competing in all the five events. Woong Ki, who has been in charge of the team for more than a year – he is contracted by the Archery Association of India (AAI) and funded by the Sports Authority of India (SAI) – has played a key role in shaping this team.

At the Asian Games, the recurve archers bagged the men’s and women’s team silver medals, ending a 13-year medal drought. The men’s team of Tarundeep Rai, Pravin Jadhav and Dhiraj Bommadevara has risen to fourth in the world rankings. They stunned reigning Olympic champions South Korea at the World Cup in Shanghai and won a gold medal after 14 years. The women’s team won bronze in Hangzhou.

The women’s team comprises seasoned Deepika Kumari, Bhajan Kaur and Ankita Bhagat. The competition will start on July 2 with the ranking rounds for all five events. The team has been training in Marseille in the build-up to the Olympics. India competing in all events makes his presence even more important.