Asian Festivals – 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games

박채은’s Article

Hello! I’m ChaeEun. Did you have a good holiday?

There was one big event that made us more happy during the holiday season!!

It’s the Asian Games~~ Non-Asian foreigners may be unfamiliar with the Asian Games! The Asian Games is the Asian version of the Olympics held once every four years. It is said to have been established to promote friendship between Asian countries, improve their competitive skills, and to prepare for the international Olympic Games.

The ongoing 2022 Asian Games were held in Hangzhou, China. It’s 2023 now, but why is this competition called the 2022 Asian Games? The reason is that it was originally scheduled to be held in 2022, but it was postponed for a year due to COVID-19 in China and will be held in 2022.

All 45 countries from Asia, which are members of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), participated in the Asian Games. It will be held from September 23rd to October 8th. There are 40 events and 61 events including detailed ones. There are so many, right? Even if you choose your favorite sports, there’s much to see.

It’s been 10 days so far. What about the medal status?

(Source: Hangzhou Asian Games 2022 website)

China, Korea, Japan, India, and Uzbekistan are ranked side by side. In terms of the number of medals, China’s gold medals are significantly different. There is not much difference after second place, but the difference between first place and second place is huge! I hope Korea will win first place, but I’m really proud of second place, too!!

In particular, South Korea’s Asian Games gold medal winner has one more tremendous benefit, along with the joy of winning a medal. Can you guess? It’s a military exemption. Since Korea is still a divided country, we are implementing conscription. It’s an army that every Korean man has to go to, but the Asian Games gold medal winner is exempt! The meaning of the gold medal will be even more different for Korean athletes, right? The mini version of the Olympics, the Asian Games! Until it’s over, let’s enjoy watching it, cheer for it, and have fun while having a heart of unity!