November 26, 2024

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The trophy of Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-koo Cup Korea Archery Competition 2023 is seen on Thursday in Mokdong Stadium, Seoul. (Hyundai Motor Group)

Hyundai Motor Group is sponsoring the Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-koo Cup Korea Archery Competition 2023, investing considerable effort to support development of the sport, the auto giant said Thursday.

With the aim of providing quality experiences for Korean archery players, the conglomerate decided to sponsor this year’s competition along with its affiliates Kia, Hyundai Mobis and Hyundai Steel.

Kicked off Wednesday, the nation’s most prestigious archery competition will take place at the War Memorial of Korea and Mokdong Stadium in Seoul for four days.

As this year marks the 60th anniversary of when Korea first became a member of the World Archery Federation, the event will be held on the largest scale since its launch in 2016.

Adding to recurve archery, compound archery is newly introduced to the competition this year, giving opportunities to more players.

A total of 209 archers -- 150 recurve archers and 59 compound archers -- will take part in this year’s event. It will be attended by world class archers including 2020 Tokyo Olympic gold medalists Kim Woo-jin, Kim Je-deok and An San, as well as the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou national team members.

The total prize money will be 520 million won ($400,000), the largest ever, and the winner will receive 100 million won. To nurture Korean archery talent, 25 percent of the prize money will be given to the winner’s coach.

Looking ahead to the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou in September and 2024 Paris Olympics, this year’s competition will boost archers' morale, the company said.

Another goal of the event is to raise public awareness of Korean archery, it added.

For the final games at the War Memorial of Korea, 700 free spectator tickets will be up for grabs.

Following the finals, a special match between Korea archery legends and rising stars will be held on the last day of the competition.

“We will strive to make the Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-koo Cup Korea Archery Competition 2023 a symbolic competition that honors the 60th anniversary of Korean archery,” said Hyundai Motor Group officials.

“We will further contribute to help improve the skills of players by providing cutting edge technology.”

Hyundai Motor Group has been a sponsor of the Korea Archery Association since 1985, the longest-running sponsorship in Korea’s sports history.

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun has been the head of the Korea Archery Association since 2005.

The auto giant recently renewed its sponsorship of the World Archery Federation for three more years until 2026, and will host the Hyundai Archery World Cup and Hyundai World Archery Championships.

By Mun So-jeong  (munsojeong@heraldcorp.com)