Gangwon Provincial Office of Education’s ‘sports department affiliation’… Badminton-Tennis-Taekwondo, etc.
Establishing a new sports club in an area where there was no sports club… Students continue their careers after graduation
The cost of founding is not small, but full support… Visualization of achievements such as gold medals at the National Sports Festival
“A fruitful project that prevents the outflow of local talent”
Lee Jong-yoon (13), a first-year student in the badminton team at Daeryong Middle School in Chuncheon, Gangwon-do, had many concerns about his career ahead of graduating from elementary school last year. Since there was no middle school in Chuncheon with a badminton club, I was in a situation where I had to either go to a middle school in another area that had a badminton club or quit sports. However, thanks to the establishment of a badminton club at Daeryong Middle School this year, I was able to continue working out while attending school in Chuncheon.
● Effective in nurturing student athletes and preventing talent outflow
Lee, who started playing badminton in the 4th grade of elementary school, was able to continue playing in middle school thanks to the ‘systematization of school sports teams by elementary, middle and high school sports’, which the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Provincial Office of Education is focusing on. This is a measure to create a sports department for a specific sport if it does not exist in one of the local elementary, middle, and high schools so that student athletes can continue to exercise without interruption throughout elementary, middle, and high schools in one region. Excellent athletes can improve their skills by continuing to exercise in a stable environment, and the phenomenon of local talent leaking out to other regions can also be prevented.
In Chuncheon, there was a men’s badminton club at Dongnae Elementary School, where Lee graduated, but there was no middle school in the district. Because of this, even after graduating from elementary school, I had to move to another area to continue playing badminton. However, with the establishment of a badminton club at Daeryong Middle School this year, three Dongnae Elementary School graduates, including Lee, were able to continue their studies and careers as athletes. In the badminton club at Daeryong Middle School, four players, including one who has just started playing sports, are sweating hard, dreaming of becoming the future Ahn Se-young and Lee Yong-dae.
Lee said, “If I wanted to continue playing badminton, which I like, I should have gone to Wonju, where the sports club is, but now that there is a badminton club in Chuncheon, there is no need to do that. I hope that a badminton club will be established at my high school in Chuncheon before I graduate.”
Seo-ah Lee (16), who is considered the most promising tennis player in Korea, experienced the same problem last year before entering high school. Since there were no high schools in Chuncheon with tennis teams, I had to choose between going to Broadcasting and Communication High School and focusing on tennis at a sports club, or going to another local high school that had a tennis club. However, this year, as the tennis club was established at Bongui High School in Chuncheon, Ms. Lee entered Bongui High School, and is currently achieving excellent results, ranking first in the domestic female junior rankings by combining academics and sports.
In Chuncheon, there are tennis clubs at Dongchuncheon Elementary School and Bomnae Middle School, but there are no high schools in the area, so graduates of elementary and middle schools had no choice but to worry about their career paths. However, with the revival of the tennis club at Bongui High School, a former tennis elite that produced Lee Hyeong-taek, concerns about career paths for elementary and middle school students in the area disappeared.
A Taekwondo club was established at Taebaek Cheoram Middle School, and three students are active as athletes. First-year student Jo Bi-song (13) said, “I’m so glad I don’t have to go to another local school to learn Taekwondo,” and added, “I want to practice hard and become a proud player representing my school and the region.”
● Gangwon student athletes perform well at the National Sports Festival
Gangwon Provincial Office of Education’s integration of sports departments began a long time ago. It slowed down for a time during the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19), but has recently become active again. Last year, seven sports teams were established, including curling at Yubong Girls’ High School in Chuncheon, wrestling at Cheoram High School in Taebaek, and taekwondo at Sabuk Middle School in Jeongseon. This year, badminton at Daeryong Middle School, tennis at Bongui High School, Taekwondo at Cheoram Middle School in Taebaek, and women’s archery at Beodeul Middle School in Wonju were established. Next year, student sports teams are planned to be established in various sports, including soft tennis at Chuncheon Soyang Middle School, table tennis at Namchuncheon Girls’ Middle School, Gangwon weight ice skating, skiing at Gangneung Middle School, and ice skating at Gangneung Gyodong Elementary School.
Establishing a school sports team requires a significant budget. This is because facilities and equipment for athletes to exercise must be provided. The Gangwon Provincial Office of Education invested a budget of 1.4 billion won in remodeling the gym to establish the badminton club at Daeryong Middle School. The gym was renovated, including installing a new floor suitable for badminton and installing bright lighting. This gym can be used not only by student athletes but also by general students and local hobbyists, so many people are enjoying the effects of the remodeling.
Bongui High School, founded by the tennis club, is also in the process of constructing a tennis court with an investment of 790 million won. In addition, Namchuncheon Girls’ Middle School, which plans to launch a table tennis club, plans to spend 1.9 billion won to build a new table tennis court.
The Gangwon Provincial Office of Education plans to consult with universities in the province to establish sports departments for these sports not only in elementary, middle, and high schools, but also in universities and business teams. In this way, top athletes in the region can continue to exercise while living a stable life without worrying about their career paths.
Gangwon high school players (under 19 years old) performed well at the recently held 105th National Sports Festival. They won a total of 99 medals, including 35 gold medals, 8 more than last year, and 28 silver and 36 bronze medals. Among 17 attempts, it ranks 4th in the gold medal ranking and 7th in the overall ranking. This is a very outstanding performance compared to the total number of student athletes and participating athletes in Gangwon-do. It is evaluated as a valuable result that combines the players’ ceaseless efforts, the coaches‘ passionate passion, and the provincial office of education’s financial and spiritual support.
Lee In-beom, head of the Culture, Sports and Special Education Department at the Gangwon Provincial Office of Education, said, “The integration of sports teams is a fruitful project that promotes the stable growth of excellent athletes and prevents the outflow of local talent, and the effect will be shown in excellent grades.” He added, “We can fill the sports teams for the sports that are missing in each elementary, middle, and high school in the province. “I will do my best to make it happen,” he said.
| Major achievements of the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province high school athletes at the 105th National Sports Festival |
| ―35 gold, 28 silver, 36 bronze ―4th overall gold medal ranking, 7th overall ranking ―Gangwon Physical Education High School 17 gold, 17 silver, 15 bronze ―Three members of Gangwon Physical Education High School won three gold medals ―Swimming: 3 new Korean records, 4 competition records ―Yanggu High School, the first tennis team to win five consecutive games at the National Sports Festival |
“After the integration of the athletics department, achievements such as gold medals at national competitions… “You get results as much as you invest.”
Interview with Gangwon Provincial Office of Education Superintendent Shin Kyeong-ho
Support for affiliation to produce elite athletes
Not only the facility-equipment budget but also training costs
“Physical strength is also an academic ability. “I want to provide an environment where students who are good at sports can exercise to their heart’s content.”
Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Superintendent of Education Shin Kyeong-ho emphasized the importance of school physical education and sports department integration in an interview with the Dong-A Ilbo held at the office of the Provincial Office of Education on the 23rd. Sports department affiliation refers to creating related sports teams so that students who excel in sports can train and practice without any gaps throughout elementary, middle, and high school. The following is a Q&A.
―The background behind the push for the integration of school sports teams… .
“Students have diverse talents. Among these, there are students who are good at sports and want to play sports. However, in the field, it is difficult to select players due to the decrease in the school-age population, and the concentration of popular sports causes school sports teams to be reduced or disbanded. “Athletic team affiliation plays an important role in helping students continue their education as student athletes and grow into professional elite athletes through continuous career exploration.”
―Are there any budget issues when establishing an athletics club?
“A lot of budget is spent on facilities and equipment at the beginning, but it is not a big problem. Considering the characteristics of the athletic department, the founding support fund will be paid in stages over three years. “After that, we will continue to support training costs to ensure stable operation.”
―The results of the athletics team affiliation… .
“Not only does it help students advance to higher education and careers, but it also provides an environment where excellent student athletes from Gangwon-do can play sports in the area where they were born and raised rather than going to other cities or provinces. In that respect, the achievements are significant. Seoah Lee, a member of Bongui High School’s tennis club, which was founded this year, won a gold medal at this year’s National Sports Festival. “The results of integrating school sports teams will continue to grow.”
―I achieved excellent results at this year’s National Sports Festival… .
“When it comes to exercise, the results come in proportion to the investment you put in. The fruits of the investment are showing one by one. This year, 30 top athletes in summer sports were given the opportunity to study in Spain for 9 days and 7 nights. 16 winter sports athletes also visited Germany and the Netherlands. Yangyang High School’s cycling club was provided with three new bicycles costing 16 million won each. Most of the student athletes achieved good results in this competition. Bobsleigh sleds worth 100 million won were provided to Sangji Daegwallyeong High School. Jaehwan Jae-Hwan, a student from this school, won a gold medal at this year’s Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics.”
―I think it would be good if even universities and business teams became affiliated… .
“First of all, we plan to actively cooperate with the seven sports of the Provincial Sports Council, as well as universities and business teams in the province such as Kangwon National University, Hallym University, and Gangneung-Wonju University, to help student athletes continue to grow even after graduation.”
―Is there anything you would like to say to student athletes, their families, and leaders? .
“The slogan of the Gangwon Provincial Office of Education is ‘Do your best.’ We are grateful to the parents and coaches who support and guide our student athletes so that they can demonstrate their skills to the fullest during training and competitions. Please provide generous support so that student athletes can focus more on their sports, and if you have any good opinions, please let us know at any time. “If schools, parents, and the Office of Education communicate with each other and build trust, our student athletes will make Gangwon’s education bloom through physical education based on that.”
