For so many athletes around the world, the Olympics is a chance to live out childhood dreams and achieve recognition and reward for their years of diligent training. However, for two South Korean Golfers, this Olympics has brought with it a critical ultimatum that could greatly change the trajectory of their lives. In a move more suited to their northern counterparts, the South Korean Government has informed Sungjae Im and Si Woo Kim that they will be conscripted into the Korean Armed Forces if they fail to finish with a medal at the Olympic Games.

Conscription has been mandatory in South Korea since 1957, and one of the very few valid reasons to avoid this service is to win a medal at either the Olympic or Asian games. This feat has been achieved only a handful of times by a South Korean, most recently with Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-Min guiding his national team to an Asian games victory in 2018 and earning him and his team’s freedom from military service.

Despite both Golfers’ undeniable success on the world stage, including two PGA Tour victories for 26-year-old Kim, failure to reach the podium in Tokyo will mean Kim could be shipped off to South Sudan, Western Sahara or Somalia to serve his nation. Meanwhile, 23-year-old Sungjae I’m will have until the 2024 Olympic Games to prove he is “enhancing national prestige” and avoid service before the conscription period is over at age 28.