The Secret Behind Jeong Eui-sun's Management Leadership Applied to Archery...

Korean Archery's Strength Imprinted at Paris Olympics
Boldness, Innovation, and Inclusion Leading Sustainable Korean Archery

The archery team, which swept all events at the 2024 Paris Olympics, unanimously credited Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun for their outstanding performance. Applying corporate management principles to individual sports disciplines not only laid the foundation for remarkable achievements in international competitions but also led to an association operation free of controversy, often compared favorably to other sports organizations. Chairman Chung has led the Korea Archery Association for 20 years, having been first appointed in 2005 and reappointed four times.

In the business world, the core elements of Chairman Chung’s leadership are cited as boldness, innovation, and inclusiveness. Rather than focusing on immediate results, he established a vision to strengthen the fundamental competitiveness and develop Korean archery in the mid to long term, which is regarded as a courageous move. Believing that a proper system is essential to remain a strong contender over a long period, he concentrated on making all aspects of the association’s operations, including athlete selection, fair and transparent.

On the 3rd (local time), immediately after the women's individual archery awards ceremony, Chung Eui-sun, Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group (second from the left in the photo), is seen congratulating and talking with athletes Nam Su-hyun, Jeon Hun-young, and Lim Si-hyun (from the left in the photo).
[Photo by Korea Archery Association]

He believes that sports positively influence society by demonstrating fair competition and doing one’s best based on skill. Korea’s archery selection system, which is free from factional unfair practices and strictly selects athletes through on-site competition, is well-known domestically and internationally. Additionally, early identification and systematic support of promising athletes, along with a long-term emphasis on popularizing archery, align with strengthening competitiveness over the mid to long term.

Alongside promoting a project to include archery classes in elementary and secondary education curricula, hosting the country’s largest archery tournaments, and organizing recreational sports and club competitions, these efforts share the same vision. Having served as president of the Asian Archery Federation, he also supports athlete development in neighboring countries. Although this increases the number of competitors, from a broader perspective, it is the right direction for global archery to advance together.

His swift adoption of cutting-edge technology is praised as innovative. After the 2012 London Olympics, Chairman Chung proposed exploring whether automotive R&D technologies could be applied to athlete training and equipment. Hyundai Motor Group’s R&D center collaborated with the Archery Association to discuss support measures. At this Olympics, robots assisting individual training and improvements to existing technologies benefited the team.

Kim Woo-jin is engaged in a one-on-one match against a shooting robot developed by Hyundai Motor Group. At the suggestion of Chairman Chung Eui-sun, Hyundai Motor Group has developed training equipment and methods applying mobility R&D technology to contribute to improving the performance of archery athletes.
[Photo by Korea Archery Association]

The introduction of training methods to prepare for various situations is also well-known. When the competition format changed to a set system in 2010, the national team selection and domestic tournaments quickly adapted. As the pressure on each arrow increased, training to enhance concentration and courage was intensified. The application of brainwave analysis technology and the adoption of vision-based heart rate monitoring equipment also helped the team.

Anticipating extreme conditions and preparing for all risk factors is a habit ingrained from corporate management. For the London Olympics, the national selection was held in Namhae, where the environment was similar, and for the Rio Olympics, practical training was conducted in a packed baseball stadium considering the sunset timing. For the Paris Olympics, training took place along the Namhan River in Yeoju to experience strong wind variables in advance.

Chairman Chung Eui-sun is encouraging the men's national archery team players ahead of the final match against the home team France at the Paris competition on the 29th of last month. From the left in the photo: Chairman Chung Eui-sun, player Kim Woo-jin, player Lee Woo-seok, player Kim Je-deok.
[Photo by Korea Archery Association]

Chairman Chung showed inclusiveness by communicating with not only the team but also the broader archery community. This fostered a sense of belonging within the organization and built trust. Jang Young-sul, Vice President of the Korea Archery Association, said, “Chairman Chung recently said in an interview that ‘I am carried by the athletes,’ but rather, the Korea Archery Association and the national team achieved their results thanks to Chairman Chung’s meticulous preparation and dedication.”

While setting the basic operational principles and direction for the association, he respected its professionalism and allowed autonomous management, creating an environment where the association could fully empathize with the field. At the Korea Archery 60th anniversary event held at the end of last year, he also proposed considering ways for Korean archery to contribute to society.

Chairman Chung Eui-sun is taking a commemorative photo with officials from various Asian countries after being appointed as the president of the Asian Archery Federation for the fifth consecutive time at the 2021 Asian Archery Federation General Assembly. Chairman Chung is also leading international sports diplomacy, contributing to the advancement of global archery and strengthening the influence of Korean archery.
[Photo by Korea Archery Association]

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