Seoul wishes to host the 2036 Summer Olympics

Seven out of 10 Seoul citizens agree with the Seoul metropolitan government hosting the 2036 Summer Olympics. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon will announce the metropolitan government’s willingness to host the Olympics alone during his European tour, which will begin on Friday. After his application to jointly host the 2032 Olympics along with Pyongyang was canceled last year, he changed the direction for Seoul to host the vent alone.

According to the Seoul metropolitan government on Monday, 72.8 percent of respondents to the survey conducted by the government agree with Seoul making another attempt to host the Summer Olympics. “We surveyed to find out what our citizens want after the plan to jointly host the Olympics with Pyongyang got canceled last year,” said a member of the metropolitan government. The survey was conducted of 1,000 Seoul residents aged between 18 and 69 from September 20 to September 25.

The benefits expected from Seoul’s hosting of the event include bringing more foreign tourists (81.4 percent), improving sports infrastructure (80.7 percent), and enhancing Seoul’s brand value (80.5 percent), according to the survey respondents. Expected concerns include economic loss from large deficits (43.8 percent), utilization of stadiums after the event (23.7 percent), and traffic congestion (23.0 percent).

Regarding the concern about large deficits, Seoul believes that facility investment can be minimized by maximizing the utilization of facilities built for the 1988 Seoul Olympics and international sports facilities in Seoul and the nearby region. In fact, according to the city’s own review of a plan to secure stadiums that meet international standards for 28 Olympic sports, stadiums within the city can be used for 13 sports, and those in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon can be used for nine sports. Only two stadiums need to be newly built for six sports, according to the metropolitan government.

Mayor Oh is expected to meet President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach during his visit to South Korea to attend the general assembly of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC), which will be held at COEX in Gangnam, Seoul from Tuesday through Friday, and expressed Seoul’s willingness to host the 2036 Summer Olympics. Then, he will visit Lausanne, Switzerland, where the IOC headquarters are located, during his upcoming European tour to officially announce Seoul’s willingness to host the event to the international community.


Seng-Hyun Kang byhuman@donga.com