Daejeon announced as host contender for 2029 Invictus Games
The city, located some 135 kilometers south of Seoul, was shortlisted by the Invictus Games Foundation alongside Aalborg, Denmark; Veneto Region, Italy; Abuja, Nigeria; Kyiv, Ukraine; and San Diego. Daejeon is home to the country's second National Cemetery and a veterans hospital and has infrastructures such as a sports stadium, a convention center and accommodations needed for hosting the Games, according to the veterans ministry.
South Korea is the only Asian country to have submitted Expressions of Interest to host the 2029 event. If the 2029 event is held in Daejeon, it would mark the first-ever Invictus Games in Asia.
'The veterans ministry will cooperate with the city of Daejeon and the Korea Disabled Veterans Organization in making efforts to host the 2029 Invictus Games, which is a place of challenge and harmony for veterans, for the first time in Asia,' Veterans Minister Kang Jung-ai said in a statement.
The host city will be officially selected and announced in the summer of 2026, the ministry said.
South Korea has participated in the Games since 2020, when the event was held in the Netherlands' western city of The Hague.
This year's Invictus Games were held in Vancouver, Canada, Feb. 6-17. More than 550 athletes from 23 countries, including 11 South Korean nationals, participated in this year's event.
Founded by Britain's Prince Harry in 2014, the Invictus Games is a multinational sports competition for wounded, injured and sick service members. It became a biennial event in 2023 after being held irregularly.
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