9th Asian Winter Games kick off in China
S.Korea participates with 148 athletes for all six sports
The ninth Asian Winter Games opened in the northeastern Chinese city of Harbin on Friday with a celebration of athletes from across the continent.
Hosting the Winter Asiad for the second time under the motto, "Dream of Winter, Love among Asia," Harbin will be home to nearly 1,300 athletes from 34 countries over the next seven days. Curling, hockey and short track speed skating have already had some preliminary action in the days leading up to Friday's ceremony.
This is the first Asian Winter Games since 2017 in Sapporo, Japan.
South Korea has sent 148 athletes for all six sports -- skiing, skating, curling, hockey, biathlon and ski mountaineering. There are 64 gold medals up for grabs in 11 disciplines.
In 2017, South Korea won 16 gold medals to set its Asian Winter Games record and finished in second place behind Japan in the medal race. It will try to finish in the top two again and reach doubles figures in the gold medal tally.
Based on the English alphabet of the country's official names, South Korea, as Republic of Korea, was the 13th nation to march into the ceremony at Harbin International Conference, Exhibition and Sports Centre. Male hockey player Lee Chong-min and female curler Gim Eun-ji were the co-flag bearers for South Korea.
North Korea is also participating in this event, with only three athletes -- all of them figure skaters -- in action.
With Chinese President Xi Jinping on hand, South Korea's top delegate was National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik. Ryu Seung-min, an Olympic table tennis champion recently elected as new president of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee, also attended the ceremony, joined by Sports Minister Yu In-chon.
The medal race will begin Saturday, with South Korea set to battle Japan in the mixed doubles curling final and also looking to grab multiple medals in short track speed skating.
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Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Korea Herald
Seoul's chronic shortage of venues has concert organizers looking elsewhere
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On Saturday, the Korea Entertainment Producers' Association (KEPA) issued a statement calling for the issue to be properly addressed, even suggesting that the National Assembly site could be a suitable location for a dedicated concert area should the National Assembly be relocated to Sejong City, as has been suggested by President Lee Jae-myung during his election campaign. 'Building a concert venue requires a massive budget, which makes it financially burdensome. On top of that, it's difficult to secure suitable land within the limited space in Seoul, and the lack of administrative support has repeatedly led to the cancellation of large-scale venue projects,' Kim Myung-soo, head of KEPA, told The Korea Herald on Wednesday. He added, 'Due to the shortage of concert venues in Seoul, event organizers are increasingly turning their attention to venues in the greater metropolitan area.' "Booking a concert venue is always a fierce competition. There are far too few venues dedicated solely to festivals or concerts," an official from a concert organizing company also said. Goyang City committed to large-scale concerts Goyang City, home to one of South Korea's largest concert venues, Goyang Sports Complex, has made it clear since last year that it is committed to attracting large-scale performances at the municipal level. Concert venues fall under different categories: arenas, which accommodate around 8,000 to 20,000 seats; domes, which hold between 20,000 and 30,000 seats; and stadiums, which can host concerts for more than 30,000 people. With a capacity of approximately 50,000, Goyang Sports Complex falls into the stadium category. Goyang Sports Complex offers excellent accessibility for both domestic and international audiences, with its proximity to Incheon International Airport, Seoul Metro Line 3, and the GTX-A line. 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Weverse Con, a joint festival organized by Hybe, was held at Inspire Entertainment Resort for two years in a row, taking advantage of the indoor and outdoor venues. On Feb. 18, Jang Hyun-ki, the general manager of the venue, announced that in 2024, the venue hosted a total of 69 events, attracting 519,000 attendees. 'This year, we are aiming for 60 billion won in revenue and 700,000 visitors. By the third year, once fully stabilized, we expect to attract 800,000 visitors annually,' he explained. He also emphasized efforts to develop in-house productions, saying, 'We aim to go beyond being just a concert venue and focus on creating original content as well.' Striving to overcome shortcomings Goyang Sports Complex faces challenges due to its open-roof structure, making it difficult to host events in winter and during the monsoon season. Meanwhile, Inspire Arena is not easy to reach as it is located on Yeongjongdo, Incheon. Goyang City is open to expanding or renovating Goyang Sports Complex to address its shortcomings. 'Discussions are underway on measures such as installing protective mats to preserve the sports lawn and adding a roof to enable performances even in inclement weather,' a Goyang City official told The Korea Herald. Inspire Arena is also working to resolve its biggest drawback — accessibility. While its proximity to Incheon International Airport makes it convenient for overseas visitors, domestic concertgoers have frequently raised concerns about the long travel time to the island. The venue estimates that it takes approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes to 2 hours to reach from central Seoul. Their goal is to reduce this to under 1 hour and 30 minutes. Artists performing at Inspire Arena have also attempted to alleviate the problem by offering shuttle bus services bundled with concert tickets. Infinite, for example, held its 15th-anniversary encore concert, "Limited Edition," on April 12-13. 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Korea Herald
4 days ago
- Korea Herald
S. Korea beats Iraq to qualify for its 11th straight World Cup
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Korea Herald
01-06-2025
- Korea Herald
K-pop association suggests turning Assembly building into K-pop venue
Amid growing demands over K-pop arena, KEPA suggest several methods The Korea Entertainment Producer's Association has urged the South Korean government to address the shortage of concert venues by suggesting sites for new K-pop concert halls — including the National Assembly building. In an official statement released Saturday, KEPA emphasized the urgent need for a large-scale, K-pop-dedicated concert arena and broader infrastructure development. 'K-pop has become a leading (form of) global cultural content representing Korea, but the domestic concert infrastructure falls short of supporting this rapidly growing industry,' the association stated. KEPA pointed out that domestic facilities significantly lag in both size and technical capabilities compared to major venues abroad. Most large K-pop concerts are held in Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul World Cup Stadium, Gocheok Sky Dome and KSPO Dome, but these facilities face limitations due to ongoing renovations, grass maintenance, and complex booking processes. As its first proposal, KEPA called for the construction of a large-scale K-pop Arena. If the relocation of the National Assembly to Sejong City becomes finalized, the vacated site in Seoul could be developed into a world-class K-pop venue, the association suggested. KEPA also proposed building a 30,000-seat indoor concert hall at the 88 Lawn Field and surrounding land in Olympic Park. Since KSPO Dome and SK Handball Stadium — both frequently used for K-pop concerts — are located within the park, the plan would create a large-scale entertainment complex in the area. As a short-term solution, the association proposed introducing a 'performance quota system," which would secure access to major sports facilities in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan area. There are scheduling difficulties in securing cultural events at Seoul World Cup Stadium and other major sports venues, as professional soccer matches and national team games are prioritized under current municipal ordinances,' the statement noted. By revising local ordinances, this system would guarantee a certain number of cultural events at major sports venues, it added. KEPA also called for sustainable policy support to strengthen the industry's competitiveness. This includes expanding support for content production, implementing financial policies, offering tax benefits for small and mid-sized agencies and launching systematic development programs. KEPA stressed that the K-pop fandom economy generates multi-trillion-won economic benefits annually, contributing significantly to tourism and local economies. 'These outcomes go beyond entertainment. They are key drivers of national soft power and international competitiveness,' the statement concluded, reinforcing the need for infrastructure investment. Founded in 1992, the Korea Entertainment Producer's Association is one of the country's leading organizations representing entertainment producers. Since 1995, it has hosted the Dream Concert, one of K-pop's most iconic joint performances.
