Global sports brand Under Armor held ‘UA NEXT 2024’ at the gymnasium of Yonsei University’s Sinchon Campus in Seoul for two days on November 16th and 17th.
‘UA NEXT’ is a global program that selects youth athletes from around the world with the highest potential and provides support in various ways to help them grow into better athletes through Under Armor.
Under Armor explained that following the successful hosting of ‘UA NEXT: CAMP SERIES KOREA’ last year, ‘UA NEXT 2024’ will be held this year to continue to discover and support elite basketball players.
‘UA NEXT 2024′ selected 21 elite first-year high school basketball players across the country and provided a variety of programs to improve the players’ performance, from basketball skill training to mental training and conditioning methods.
The 21 camp participants were selected through recommendations from KBL scouts and Under Armor’s own verification.
Under Armor made a lot of preparations for the players who participated that day. Approximately 2 million won worth of items were provided per player, including basketball shoes and uniforms, and a dedicated locker room was created for participants on the second floor of the Yonsei University gymnasium, the venue, to create an atmosphere as if they were at a professional team.
Participants were evaluated by judges based on body measurements and performances through combines, pickup games, and curry challenges over two days. The judges consisted of commentators Shin Ki-seong and Jeong Young-sam and basketball reporters.
An Under Armor official said, “For the objectivity and fairness of the evaluation, the judges were made up of people who are basketball experts but do not usually attend Ama Basketball. And what we asked the judges to do was not important about what they had done before, but right here. “I asked them to evaluate based only on their performance, so I didn’t write their names on the players’ uniforms,” he explained.
Commentator Jeong Young-sam, who participated as a judge, said, “The friends who come here play for different teams and come together to play. So, of course, the organizational aspect is bound to be inconsistent. We need to watch how they play in this situation.” He said.
After completing three pickup games, the participants relaxed for a long time through the Curry Challenge, laughed, and watched their teammates shoot. As a result, the final winner was Kim Min-ki of Yongsan High School, who scored 18 points.
Lastly, the final five selected by the judges included Kwak Geon-woo (Yongsan High School), Baek Ji-hoon (Anyang High School), Yoon Ji-hoon (Gyeongbok High School), Heo Geon-woo (Anyang High School), and Kim Seung-hyun (Myeong High School).
Those selected received separate support for Under Armor products in addition to what they had previously received, and were even fortunate enough to participate as Korean representatives at UA NEXT APAC, held in China in December.
‘UA NEXT 2024’ final 5 people list
Yongsan High School Kwak Geon-woo
Anyang High School Baek Ji-hoon
Gyeongbok High School Yoon Ji-hoon
Anyang High School Heo Geon-woo
Myeongji High School Seunghyun Kim
Photo = Provided by Under Armor
