GANGNEUNG CITY ENG - 솔향강릉

​- Winter training and stove league, 13 sports, 138 teams, 3,912 participants -

Gangneung City, which is a widely popular travel destination among Gen MZ with its majestic natural scenery, excellent restaurants, and stylish houses, is drawing attention as a winter training camp, with an endless stream of sports teams visiting recently.

In the current winter season, 83 teams specializing in 10 sports are in Gangneung for winter training, and a stove league of 55 teams in soccer, baseball, and basketball is scheduled to be held. As a result, a total of 3,912 people from the sporting industry are expected to stay in Gangneung.

Since PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics, active winter sports marketing has been carried out in connection with the Gangneung Arena and Gangneung Curling Center that meet the international standards as sporting event venues. There has also been a focus on attracting sports teams for off-season training camps using public sports facilities in the region.

In the case of curling, in particular, the founding of Team Kim, arguably the best among the semi-professional curling teams across the country, has helped attract curling teams1) wishing to hold training camps as well as various curling competitions2).

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1) 40 teams (248 people) in 2020 → 100 teams (551 people) in 2021 → 107 teams (615 people) in 2022

2) 3 competitions in 2020 / 40 teams (339 people) → 3 competitions in 2021 / 38 teams (290 people) → 5 competitions in 2022 / 145 teams (770 people)

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With systematized public sports facilities, Gangneung has successfully hosted national and provincial athletics events3) in the past three years. With around 28,600 participating athletes and their families visiting the city, these events have helped revitalize local tourism and commercial activities that had been stagnant due to COVID-19.

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3) 4 competitions in 2020 / 5,020 people → 8 competitions in 2021 / 7,920 people → 20 competitions in 2022 / 15,670 people

The World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship in the coming April, the 58th Gangwon-do People’s Sports Festival and Gangwon-do Sports Festival for Persons with Disabilities in June, and the Presidential Flag National Taekwondo Championships in July are expected to draw family visitors and help promote the sports culture and the local economy.

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“We will widely publicize that Gangneung City is the best place to host winter training camps and national and provincial competitions, and we will create a true sports hub with a sufficient foundation and capacity to host large-scale sports events,” said a Gangneung City official who then added, “We will do our best to ensure that the benefits from the local economy revitalized as a result of the active sports marketing can be returned to the citizens.”

[Reference 1] Off-season training

(unit: participating teams/people)