SPECIAL LIBERATION DAY FOR HAENAM’S VOLCANIC SIDE WITH ATHLETIC COMPETITION FOR OVER 70 YEARS

A special Liberation Day event was held in Hwasan-myeon, Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do. The 21st Hwasan-myeon People’s Day and the 74th 8-15 Liberation Memorial Sports Day were held at Hwasan Elementary School on the 15th.Despite the sweltering heat, the residents of the village gathered at the sports field to share the joy of liberation through the marching of the Korean flag and the chanting of hooray, and to create a special place of unity by participating in the village versus village athletic competition. The Hwasan-myeon Liberation Day Sports Competition, which has been held for more than 70 years, has a special story behind it .The Hwasan-myeon Liberation Day Sports Tournament originated from a soccer tournament held by villages in Gotcheonam the year after liberation .While the joy of liberation was still fresh, the tournament was held every August 15 to commemorate the event and to unite the residents. Except for the year of the Korean War, 1968 when there was a major drought, the Sewol ferry disaster, the MERS outbreak, and the recent COVID-19, it has never been missed .In the 1970s and 1980s, the tradition was so popular that more than 50 soccer teams from 42 villages competed in the tournament .Because of this, the tournament has been so successful that people from all over the country have used it as an opportunity to visit their hometown, saying, “I can’t come for the holidays, but I will attend the Liberation Day sports tournament .Oh Dong-soo, chairman of the Hwasan-myeon Sports Association, said, “I know of very few Liberation Day events that have been organized by private citizens for decades.” “As the rural population decreases, the size of the 스포츠토토링크 athletic events has decreased and the athletes have aged, but they have become a special pride of Hwasan-myeon.”This year’s Liberation Day celebration in Hwasan-myeon included a parade and commemorative ceremony for children and families at the Duranno Regional Children’s Center in Hwasan-myeon, traditional and folk games, including soccer matches by region, and a singing competition.”Haenam is characterized by the spirit of patriotism that began with General Lee Sun-sin’s Myeongnyang Daejeon, and residents have been promoting various events to celebrate Liberation Day on their own,” said Myung Hyun-kwan.”I hope that the cry of liberation that started in Haenam, the tip of the earth, will serve as an opportunity to once again remind people of their love for the country.”