Gwangju Talks: August 2014

What are the pros and cons of holding sports competitions in Gwangju?

 

Kate

First of all, to host a sports competition is a big event for any city, and this would be no different in the case of Gwangju. Any sporting event would involve everybody in the city, even those who are not sports fans…

Thinking about the advantages of hosting a sports event, one might consider that the government will help financially in developing the infrastructure of the city, and therefore the city could benefit from this in the long term. Another good point of holding a sports event in the city is that it could raise the profile of the city around the world, perhaps inspiring many people to visit the country and the city, experiencing the culture while enjoying the event.

[Regarding] disadvantages, I notice that the city may get too crowded and the police will have to pay more attention to ensure the smooth running of the event. In addition, any sporting event held in Gwangju will put pressure on the local infrastructure, such as the transportation network, if the correct transport planning and financing for such planning are not in place.

 

Tom

Generally, a global sports competition coming to a city is rarely a bad thing. However, there are of course things to be wary of: poor planning, lack of resources and even (depending on the type of event) weather can be a significant factor in the success of such an event. These types of things aside though, the fantastic benefits a global sports competition offers far outweighs the negatives. The host city has the opportunity to promote itself to the outside word – both externally via the media and internally via traveling supporters. International traveling supporters will have what is likely to be their first experience in not only the host city, but the host nation. A positive experience is a great advertisement for the city and nation as a whole. Added to this is the increased revenue from traveling supporters.

Robin

Even though I’ve never lived in Gwangju while it has hosted a major sports competition, I imagine some of the obvious pros would be increased revenue for the city and local businesses, as well as an increase in tourism. For cons I would say that there would be a definite increase in traffic and public transportation would be much harder to take because of all of the people visiting Gwangju for the event. This would make going to and from work more difficult for residents of Gwangju and could cause a lot of frustration. So many extra people in Gwangju could also mean more work for the police.

 

Mr. Jo, 55, male, businessman

First of all, building sports infrastructure for global competitions will bring positive effects that improve accessibility to sports for citizens. Also, preparing accommodations for athletes as urban redevelopment deserves to be praised, and it helps to reduce cost of operation and maintenance of facilities.

I’m just afraid of a lack of preparation and publicity for upcoming global events. The most important thing is the participation of citizens. Citizens want to enjoy this event together, not to just borrow facilities like stadiums and lodgings. The committee needs to promote the event more actively.

I hope Gwangju will be a better city to live in by hosting the Universiade Gwangju 2015 and the World Championships for Swimming 2019.

Kim Dae-wook, 27, male, university student

Tourism income will be increased because of the effect of promoting the city as the host country, and this will directly affect the economy growth of the local people. Secondly, transportation and convenient facilities will multiply; because lots of people from all around the world will gather here for the competition, the city will prepare for this. Thirdly, jobs will increase during the period of the competition.

Talking about the negative effects, the geographical position of Gwangju is not good. Because the city is far from the capital, the physical strength of foreign athletes will be affected. Next, welfare benefits will be decreased in accordance with the budget. Lastly, if the competition can’t get successful results, the city may cope with a vast debt.

 

Jang Mi Majoring in Visual design in CNU, student

I think Gwangju is not ready to hold a huge competiton. It has no proper sports facilities now. If Gwangju is to hold the competiton, the city will have to take huge amounts of the budget for better facilities. Furthermore, the new mayor of Gwangju, who was elected this year, has planned to use most of the budget of the city for job openings. Now, Gwangju must prioritize these plans. Thus, it would be effective economically to hold the sports festival in another city equipped with good establishments.

 

Sim Jun Majoring in Chemical Engineering at CNU, student

Many countries and cities have hosted global sports competitions. Why? It leads to numerous benefits that people expect. Gwangju will host the Summer Universiade in 2015. It is not important for event organizers to achieve good results in the competition, but they hope the global sports competition in our hometown can be a big chance to build a positive brand image. For instance, our nation built a positive brand image and showed our national power through the Seoul Olympics in 1988.

Jo Yong I Majoring in chemical engineering in CNU, student

Even if the Gwangju government holds the global sports competition, the economic effectiveness will not be huge because of the investment to build an arena, a transport system and other infrastructure for spectators. The government should, however, continuously try to lure in global sports competitions. There is no direct benefit, but if citizens in Gwangju treat players, coaches and spectators from other countries well, they will be touched by Gwangju and recommend our city to people around them. I think this is the best method to promote Gwangju and attract visitors. Through the global sports competitions, we should promote a kind, beautiful and nice Gwangju to people all around the world.