Kim Yeon-koung tells culture minister how to revamp Korean volleyball

From left: Former volleyball gamers Han Music-yi and Lee Sook-ja, Tradition Minister Yu In-chon, Heungkuk Life Insurance coverage Pink Spiders outdoors hitter Kim Yeon-koung and former participant Han Yoo-mi pose for a photograph throughout a gathering by the Ministry of Tradition, Sports activities and Tourism on the Nationwide Museum of Trendy and Up to date Artwork in central Seoul on Thursday. [YONHAP]

 
Korean volleyball legends Kim Yeon-koung, Han Yoo-mi, Han Music-yi and Lee Sook-ja joined Tradition Minister Yu In-chon Thursday to debate the way forward for the game in Korea and the necessity to overhaul the nation’s participant improvement system and help athletes to search out careers in retirement.
 
 
In a gathering held on the Nationwide Museum of Trendy and Up to date Artwork in central Seoul by the Ministry of Tradition, Sports activities and Tourism, the 4 volleyball legends — three of whom are retired whereas Kim continues to play within the home league — joined Tradition Minister Yu, Korea Volleyball Affiliation President Oh Han-nam and different volleyball officers to debate plans to enhance Korean volleyball.
 
The assembly comes after a disappointing few years for the Korean recreation. Since Kim retired from nationwide obligation in 2021, the group has did not shine at any worldwide event.  
 
Korea misplaced all 12 video games on the 2022 Volleyball Nations League and repeated the identical consequence within the annual event the next yr and did not medal on the Hangzhou Asian Video games later that yr, earlier than failing to qualify for the Paris Olympics this yr.
 
This yr marks the primary time the ladies’s group has failed to achieve the Olympics since 2008. The boys’s group, in the meantime, failed to achieve the Video games for a sixth straight time this yr.  
 
“There’s a lack of economic help for each girls’s and males’s volleyball, and I feel that must be taken care of,” Kim stated within the assembly. “I additionally suppose that the [Korea Volleyball Association] wants to ascertain a extra systematic strategy by way of which youth gamers can go on to change into senior gamers for the nationwide group. We’d like a sturdy, future-oriented mission like this.”  
 
Tradition Minister Yu identified that constructing such a system would want to begin at elementary faculty degree.
 
“Not many faculties have amenities similar to a observe discipline like they do in the US or Europe, which limits what college students can do,” Yu stated. “We’re making ready to return to fundamentals and produce large modifications steadily as soon as the Olympics is over.”
 

Kim additionally really helpful including reserve groups to the V League.  
 
“The seven groups within the V League can not signal new gamers except current gamers depart their groups, because the groups all have a set quantity capability,” Kim stated. “I’m conscious that they’re attempting to implement a reserve group system. Doing so would enable extra gamers to get probabilities and broaden the participant pool.” 
 
Lee, Han Yoo-mi and Han Music-yi, in the meantime, urged that groups want to search out methods to assist gamers contemplate their choices in retirement.
 

Han Yoo-mi speaks throughout a gathering by the Ministry of Tradition, Sports activities and Tourism within the Nationwide Museum of Trendy and Up to date Artwork in central Seoul on Thursday. [YONHAP]

 
The three all stated that they really feel there’s a lack of help for gamers with regards to selecting a profession outdoors the game.
 
Lee and Han Yoo-mi now work as commentators, whereas Han Music-yi continues to be attempting to resolve what her subsequent steps are.
 
Former Daejeon Jung Kwan Jang Purple Sparks center blocker Han Music-yi retired from the game after the tip of the 2023-24 V League season in April.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]

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