Impact of the 2014 Sewol Ferry disaster on Korean sports

Team Korea in swimming made history at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games, clinching 22 medals, including six golds, six silvers, and ten bronzes. This achievement set new records for both the number of gold medals secured and the overall medal count in swimming. What motivated our national swimmers to reach these remarkable heights?

In 2008, when Korean swimming legend Park Tae-hwan secured his and the nation's first Olympic victory, there were 1,570 elementary school swimmers, as reported by the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee ("KSOC"). By 2023, this number had grown nearly 1.6 times to 2,484. This growth is particularly notable as it occurred alongside a decrease in the total number of elementary school students in Korea, which fell from approximately 3.67 million to 2.67 million during the same period.

Elementary school swimmers saw significant growth, notably after the 2014 Sewol Ferry disaster. Following the incident, more young students began learning survival swimming, leading to the discovery of new swimming talents. Ironically, this tragic event served to promote the expansion of swimming culture.

Indeed, growing a swimming culture doesn't guarantee immediate success in sports. Take China, for example, where many people ride bicycles, yet they have few global cyclists. At the Hangzhou Asian Games, China secured just two of the 12 gold medals in track cycling, while Japan claimed the remaining gold medals.

In the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, Japan won just two gold medals out of 14 in the same event. Experts widely agree that Japan's rapid rise as a strong player in track cycling within just five years is largely attributed to the High Performance Center of Japan Cycling. Operating under the goal of elevating Japanese cycling to a world-class level, the center provides a systematic elite training program grounded in science.

In Buddhism, occurrences depend on the presence of both direct and indirect elements. For example, cheese forms from milk only when the correct temperature and humidity are present. Similarly, success in 21st-century sports hinges on combining a thriving base culture and elite training programs. Korea's success in the Hangzhou Asian Games can be attributed to the combination of a widespread swimming base and the support of the Korea Swimming Federation.

Using a Buddhist saying to illustrate progress in sports is linked to KSOC President Lee Kee-heung, a devout Buddhist and a two-time leader of the Korean Buddhist Jogye Order believers. Lee's appointment as the first president of KSOC may seem fateful, as it coincided with the merger of KSOC, which primarily represents elite sports, and the Korea Council of Sport for All, which focuses on grassroots sports, in 2019. Nevertheless, President Lee seems focused on delineating athletes and non-athletes, possibly due to his emphasis on elite sports representation.

The World Health Organization reported that Korean female students aged 11 to 17 face one of the most severe levels of physical inactivity globally (97.2%). Team Korea in women's sports secured 13 gold medals in Hangzhou, trailing Japan by nine medals. In men's sports, Korea also won 26 gold medals, but its total medal count falls short of Japan's. Prioritizing elite sports over fostering a sports-for-all culture may not yield positive results.


Kyu-In Hwang kini@donga.com