Top World Badminton Players Compete in Jeonnam to Showcase Their Skills

Agreement for the Successful Hosting of the '2021~2023 Korea Open World Tour'

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] The world's top badminton players will compete in Jeonnam.

Jeonnam Province announced on the 5th that it has decided to join forces with related associations to successfully host the ‘2021~2023 Korea Open World Tour Badminton World Championships’.

On this day, Jeonnam Governor Kim Young-rok, Vice President of the Badminton Korea Association Kim Jung-soo, Chairman of the Jeonnam Sports Council Kim Jae-moo, Chairman of the Jeonnam Badminton Association Kim Young-seop, and other badminton officials attended and signed a business agreement for the successful hosting of the tournament.

Lee Yong-dae, a Beijing Olympic gold medalist from Hwasun who put Korean badminton on the world map, and An Se-young, currently ranked 9th in the women's world rankings from Naju, were appointed as promotional ambassadors for the tournament.

The Korea Open World Tour Badminton Championships, which will see a large number of players representing countries around the world including South Korea, is the top international tournament in Korea and has been held since 1991.

In Jeonnam, from next year until 2023, about 350 players from 30 countries will participate, and the tournament will be held for six days each year.

Until now, the tournament was held in the metropolitan areas such as Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi, but Jeonnam is the first local region to host the tournament for three consecutive years, which is regarded as a great achievement demonstrating the excellence of Jeonnam’s sports facilities and the strength of its sports marketing.

The province has preliminarily selected Yeosu City for 2021 and Suncheon City for 2022 as candidate host cities, and is currently in discussions with hopeful cities for the 2023 tournament.

Through hosting this tournament, not only will domestic fans including those in Jeonnam be able to see the skills of the world’s top players in person, but it is also expected to have a significant economic ripple effect on the region.

Kim Jung-soo, Vice President of the Badminton Korea Association, said, “We will do our best to revitalize and develop regional badminton,” and added, “I would like to once again thank Governor Kim Young-rok of Jeonnam for his active support in making the tournament possible.”

Kim Jae-moo, Chairman of the Jeonnam Sports Council, stated, “I hope that through this agreement, the province, host cities and counties, and sports organizations can all achieve a win-win situation,” and added, “We will do our best to make this tournament one where Jeonnam’s local players and recreational athletes can participate and enjoy badminton together.”

Jeonnam Governor Kim Young-rok emphasized, “This international tournament, which is the most popular sport in recreational sports and loved by all badminton players, will be held in Jeonnam for three years,” and said, “We will provide full support at the provincial level to ensure the successful hosting of the tournament together with badminton legend Lee Yong-dae and badminton prodigy An Se-young.”

Meanwhile, badminton is a sport in the recreational sports field that families can enjoy together, allowing them to enjoy leisure time as well as health and fun all at once. It is a popular sport enjoyed by about 1 million club members nationwide, including about 50,000 in Jeonnam.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.