Sport in South Korea

Taekwondo, a popular martial sport is often claimed to have historical origins on the Korean peninsula with origins said to have been traced as far back as the 1st century BCE. However, such historical claims are difficult to empirically verify and separate from the influences of neighboring counties. The sport rose to prominence following the end of Japanese occupation with the end of WWII. Formalized rules were established in 1961 and in 1988 the sport became an Olympic event. The name "Taekwondo" literally means way of foot and fist, although the modern emphasis lies on the kicks.[1] This may be a way to help legitimize the sport's connection to the traditional practice called Taekkyon, which originated in Korea during the Goguryeo period in the 4th century. Taekkyon uses hands and feet as well as any part of the body; though only open feet and open hands are allowed during competitions. The motions are smoother and more curvilinear than in Taekwondo. Although both disciplines start with the sound "tae" in English, there is no relationship.

Although there is much controversy regarding the historical origins of many martial disciplines in South Korea, there is little question that, Koreanized or traditional in origin, Korean martial arts and sports have enjoyed considerable success. Styles such as Hapkido, Kuk Sool, Hwarangdo, Han Moo Do, Yudo, Kumdo, Goog-sool, and many others arose quickly out of an independent Korea and have spread to countries around the world. Although they are not as popular as Taekwondo, they each uniquely represent the Korean martial spirit which dates back to antiquity. Unlike Japanese martial arts which often use "-do" at a name's end (meaning "way"), traditional Korean martial arts were called "Mu Sool" or "Mu Yea". This could lead to some confusion since although the "do" in Taekwondo and Hapkido means "way" (as in Karate-do and Aikido), the historical meaning in Hwarangdo is different from the modern usage (also "way" like the others). When that martial art was invented in the 1960s, the name was borrowed from an ancient group (do) consisting mainly of the children of the gentry class (yangban) for learning military tactics, leadership, and fighting skills.

A 2019 poll showed that a plurality of 22.7% of South Korean sports fans identified football as their favorite sport, with baseball ranked 2nd at 20.6% of respondents. However, the polling did not indicate the extent to which respondents follow both sports.[2]

Baseball

Incheon Munhak Baseball Stadium

Main article: Baseball in South Korea

Baseball was introduced in 1905 by American missionaries and carries a strong following today. The Korea Professional Baseball league, a 10-team circuit, was established in 1982. Korea won the Gold Medal in baseball at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Korea is also a regular participant in the World Baseball Classic, and is considered one of the best baseball countries in international competition. Several Korean players have gone on to play in Major League Baseball. The domestic KBO League consistently draws 8 million total fans per year, averaging approximately 11,500 spectators per game, both highest among professional spectator sports in South Korea.[3] There is also an active baseball cheering culture in South Korea, with each team having its own method of cheering.[4]

Association football

2008 K-League Winner, Suwon Samsung Bluewings.

Main article: Football in South Korea

The national football team became the first team in the Asian Football Confederation to reach the FIFA World Cup semi-finals in the 2002 FIFA World Cup, jointly hosted by South Korea and Japan.[5] The Korea Republic national team (as it is known) has qualified for every World Cup since Mexico 1986, and has broken out of the group stage twice: first in 2002, and again in 2010, when it was defeated by eventual semi-finalist Uruguay in the Round of 16. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, South Korea won the Bronze Medal for football.

South Korea, which competes internationally under the name of "Korea Republic", has qualified for ten FIFA World Cups including the most recent 2018 tournament (Asian record), and co-hosted the 2002 World Cup, finishing in 4th place. Also in 2010, the country's under-17 women's team won the 2010 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in Trinidad and Tobago, claiming South Korea's first-ever title in worldwide FIFA competition. The K-League is the oldest domestic professional football league in Asia. A huge number of tiny amateur football gatherings are active and immensely popular.

Golf is very popular in South Korea. It is often thought that this is linked to the fact that golf is considered a status symbol. Membership in golf clubs in South Korea is considerably more expensive than in Japan or the US. South Korea is especially strong in women's golf; 47 Koreans play on the world's leading women's tour, the LPGA tour in the [United States]. The best-known Korean golfer is Pak Se-ri.

Ice skating is also a very popular sport which sees kids even as young as 5 years old starting to compete and getting private coaching on a daily basis. National leadership deliberately focused on short-track speed skating as an area of focus to do well in the Olympics and thus encouraged a culture of skating.[8] The sport was first introduced to the country in 1982 by a Japanese university team who competed in an exhibition event, and the South Korean national team was established three years later, in time for the 1986 Asian Winter Games. By the first half of the 1990s they had become a major power in the sport, with Kim Ki-hoon becoming the country's first Winter Olympic gold medallist at the 1992 Winter Games in the men's 1000 metres, and the team winning five golds and a silver at the 1994 Winter Olympics.[9]

South Korea women's national handball team is one of two non-European countries to have won the World Championship and the only one to have captured Olympic gold.

Rugby union is played to some degree in South Korea, with the Korean team being currently ranked 30th in the world (as of November 2019) in the current IRB world rankings. Korea have been participating in the Asian Five Nations since 2008 with a 3rd-place finish in 2014. Most of South Korea's national rugby team players play their club rugby in Japan as South Korea doesn't have a professional league. The national rugby sevens side finished third in the Asian qualifier for the 2016 Summer Olympics, reaching the final qualifying tournament, but was unable to proceed past first-round group play in the final qualifier.

Kabaddi is a growing sport in South Korea, with the South Korea national kabaddi team ranked 3rd in the world. Nine Korean players are playing in the Pro Kabaddi league in India.

Korean captain Jang Kun Lee is the most famous international player in the Pro Kabaddi league in India and is currently playing for the Bengal Warriors.

In the 2016 Kabaddi World cup, Korea finished in 3rd place in the tournament, as they lost to Iran in the semi-finals. Korea was the only team to beat the eventual winners and world champions India in the tournament. Korea was also invited to participate in the 2018 Dubai Kabaddi Masters as being among the top 4 Kabaddi playing nations in the world.[10]

Cricket is not that common, but South Korea did enter a national team during the 2014 Asian Games which saw them beat the People's Republic of China. Cricket is mostly played by expats and a league only exists in Seoul and the surrounding suburbs; the side for the Asian Games, which could only draw from South Korean citizens, consisted partially of converted baseball players.[11]

Table tennis is popular in South Korea. There are minor leagues in many universities.

E-sports have found a strong home in South Korea, StarCraft professional competition being the largest example of these. Major corporate sponsored teams and leagues have formed in e-Sports, the most notable leagues being the OnGameNet Starleague, the MBCGame StarCraft League (retired), and Proleague. Some television stations are devoted to broadcasting electronic sports, such as Ongamenet, GomTV, and formerly MBCGame. The Korean e-Sports Association, an arm of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, was founded in 2000 to promote and regulate esports in the country.[12]

South Korea hosted the annual Formula One Korean Grand Prix in Yeongam from 2010 until 2013. However, South Korea has yet to have a driver on the grid.

On 30 November 2018, Formula E CEO, Alejandro Agag signed an agreement with Moon Jae-sik, chairman of JSM Holdings.[13] South Korea was given the right to hold the Seoul ePrix from 2020 to 2025. It will be first ePrix in South Korea and third Asian country hosting after Hong Kong and China (Beijing and Sanya).[14]

Ice hockey is slowly emerging as fans in Anyang city sees sell-out games for Anyang Halla hockey club, which became the first non-Japanese club to win the championship title for Asia League Ice Hockey. South Korea has 4 teams participating in the Asia League Ice Hockey championship.

• ^ "Kite Flying as a Sport". Britannica Student Encyclopedia (Online ed.). 2005.
• ^ "Sport". Retrieved July 23, 2005.
• ^ "Korea: Education, Recreation, and Welfare". Britannica Student Encyclopedia (Online ed.). 2005.
• ^ "Traditional Sports and Games". Retrieved July 23, 2005.
• ^ Korean Folk Village (2000). Korean Traditional Culture: Scents of Korean Traditional Culture. Lee Sang-So. ISBN 978-89-951216-2-7.
• ^ "Martial art: Taekwondo". Encyclopædia Britannica (Online ed.). 2005.
• ^ "Seoul 1988". www.olympic.org. Retrieved March 12, 2010.