Friendly South-North Korean Ice Hockey Match held in Gangwon province
Governor of Gangwon province Kim Jin-Sun and Rhee Chung-bok, vice-chairman of the Korea Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation, made the final agreement on the friendly ice hockey match while they were at the South-North Gangwon province Folk Culture Festival (Sep. 27~Sep. 29, 2005).
Vice-chairman Jeong Deok-gi of the Korea Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation will lead a group of 37 people as they visit the South: 23 coaches and players and 14 members of the Sports Council.
The idea for the exhibition began with the basic agreement on winter sports exchange signed by Kim Yeong-dae, the chairman of the Korea Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation, and Kim Jin-Sun, the governor of Gangwon province, during the ceremony for the completion of the Anbyeon Salmon Hatchery (Dec. 23, 2003). The hatchery was jointly constructed by South and North Gangwon province.
The agreement included holding winter sports games between the South and North, getting young North Koreans to participate in the Dream Program and conducting a winter training camp for young South and North Koreans. In particular, the agreement also stated North Korea will support and cooperate in Pyeongchang’s bid for the 2014 Winter Olympics.
On March 3, a joint practice between South and North athletes will be held at Chuncheon Ice Rink from 9 a.m. to noon.
The opening ceremony will be held at Chuncheon Euiam Ice Rink at 3 p.m. on March 3, and the first match will feature the 'Woori" team and "Hana" team, whose players will be 50 percent from national university-corporate teams of the South and 50 percent from the North.
The second exhibition, between the Gangwon Land team and North Korean team, will be held at 4 p.m. on March 4 at Chuncheon Euiam Ice Rink.
In addition, as a result of the South-North Gangwon province Exchange and Cooperation promoted by Gangwon province for the past five years, it is expected to greatly contribute to the formation of a community through South-North reconciliation and cooperation.
Active South-North cooperation in bidding for the 2014 Winter Olympics will help create prime conditions for hosting a peaceful Olympics, which will greatly boost Pyeongchang’s chances of bringing the Winter Games to South Korea.
History of South-North Gangwon province exchange and cooperative activities:
It all started when Wun-eob Jeong, chairman of the Korea Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation, and Governor Kim Jin-Sun concluded a basic agreement after being officially invited to North Korea in December 2000, the first such invitation to a South Korean governor.
The agreement, drafted at the time of the opening of the Anbyeon Salmon Hatchery on December 2003, was the turning point in diversifying cooperative activities from winter sports exchanges and folk cultural festivals to the greater fields of society and culture.
The agreement concluded during the South-North Gangwon province Folk Culture Festival on September 2005 became the opportunity to deepen such ties, through events like a friendly ice hockey match and fishery cooperation in the East Sea.
By successfully promoting the business of South-North cooperation, including East Coast salmon breeding and Geumgang Mountain pest control from 2001 until today, Gangwon’s South-North activities have been seen as an exemplary case of exchange and cooperation, having built trust between South and North Gangwon province and seeking South-North joint interests.
In its weekly unification report, North Korea selected the South-North Gangwon province Folk Cultural Festival held last year as the biggest event in the 2005 South-North relations. And during the Torino Winter Olympics (February 10 to 26), Wung Jang, an IOC member, actively cooperated with Pyeongchang’s bid for the 2014 Winter Olympics.
웹사이트: http://www.pyeongchang2014.org
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2006년 9월 26일 15:16
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2006년 9월 22일 15:40