As the LPGA returns to action this week in Thailand, one past champion is notably absent. Inbee Park, who last teed it up on the LPGA in August of 2022 at the AIG Women’s British Open, has no plans to compete this year either, according to her manager.
Park, 35, gave birth to her first child, daughter Inseo, in April 2023.
The 21-time winner was announced as one of 32 candidates for the IOC’s Athlete’s Commission. Park, of course, won gold at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. She plans to focus on promoting herself for the upcoming elections in the coming months.
Olympic athletes will be eligible to vote in the Olympic Village in Paris this summer. Four athletes from four different sports will be elected by their peers. Should Park be successful, she will serve an eight-year term.
Park won the 2013 Honda LPGA Thailand, kicking off a season in which she won three majors. The seven-time major winner qualified for the LPGA Hall of Fame in 2016.