A single venue now displays the gold medal Suh Yun-bok won at the Boston Marathon alongside the hoop that rolled across the opening ceremony of the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The National Sports Museum, the country's first national museum devoted to sports, has opened and begun full operations.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism held the museum's opening ceremony on the 15th together with the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation.
About 150 people attended, including Culture Minister Choi Hwi-young, figures from the sports and cultural communities and donors of sports heritage items. The museum was established to systematically collect and preserve Korean and international sports heritage and to document the history of Korean sports. It reflects calls from the sports community for a public archive, given the risk that materials held privately by organizations and individual athletes could be lost.
The building has two basement levels and four above-ground floors. The first floor houses a special exhibition hall, the second and third floors hold permanent exhibitions, and the fourth floor is a rooftop garden. The two basement levels serve as storage. The museum has secured about 70,000 sports-related items to date.
Featured exhibits include the gold medal won by Suh Yun-bok, winner of the 1947 Boston Marathon; the football boots of Kim Yong-sik, known as the pioneer of Korean football; and the competition uniform of Yang Jung-mo, Korea's first Olympic gold medalist. Also on display are the torch used at the Seoul Olympics and the hoop that drew global attention at the opening ceremony.
To mark the opening, the museum will hold a stamp tour on the 17th in which about 200 members of the public visit key exhibits and complete missions. Participatory programs such as "My Record Card" and "Signature Moment Studio" will run on a continuing basis for general visitors.
"The history of Korean sports is not only the records set by athletes but the memories of all the people who cheered and celebrated those moments together," Choi said. "I hope the museum establishes itself as a space that systematically preserves sports heritage and shares the challenges and emotions contained within it with future generations."