Korea’s sports history finds a new home at Seoul Olympic Park
Korea’s first National Sports Museum opened at Seoul Olympic Park, displaying 70,000 artifacts from landmark sporting moments.
The newly opened National Sports Museum of Korea in Songpa District, southern Seoul
NATIONAL SPORTS MUSEUM OF KOREA
Korea’s first national museum dedicated to sports opened Thursday at Olympic Park in Songpa District, southern Seoul, with a collection of about 70,000 items tracing the country’s sporting history.
The National Sports Museum of Korea was established by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation to collect and preserve sports heritage scattered across Korea and overseas, and to use it for exhibitions, education and research.
Highlights of the collection include the winner’s medal Suh Yun-bok (1923-2017) won at the 1947 Boston Marathon, the football boots of Korean pioneer Kim Yong-sik (1910-1985) and the competition uniform of wrestler Yang Jung-mo, Korea’s first Olympic gold medalist. Also on display are a torch from the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the gulleongsoe hoop that was rolled across the stadium during the Games’ opening ceremony. Gulleongsoe is a traditional Korean game in which players roll a hoop made of thick wire or bamboo bent into a circle, guiding it along with a stick.
The museum spans two basement levels and four floors above ground. The first floor houses a special exhibition hall, a lobby and a cafe; the second and third floors feature permanent exhibitions; and the fourth floor is a rooftop garden. Two basement levels hold storage vaults for preserving artifacts.
The neighboring Seoul Olympic Museum building has been renovated as part of the project to house a children’s museum, a sports library and spaces for education and hands-on programs.
“The history of Korean sports is not only the records set by athletes but the memories of all the people who cheered and celebrated those moments together,” said Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young, who attended the opening ceremony. “I hope the National Sports Museum will become a place that systematically preserves precious sports heritage and where the public and future generations can share the challenges and inspiration within it.”
BY LEE JIAN [[email protected]]
