The 20th National Deaf Sports Festival Held in Busan ... May 5-7

Opening Ceremony to Be Held at Sajik Sports Complex on the 5th at 6 PM

Busan City announced that the ‘20th National Deaf Sports Festival,’ a festival for deaf people nationwide, will be held across Busan from the 5th to the 7th for three days.

Marking its 20th anniversary this year, the ‘National Deaf Sports Festival’ has been held annually since its first event in 2004 to expand sports participation opportunities for the deaf and to encourage the development of deaf sports and social participation.

The ‘20th National Deaf Sports Festival’ is sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation, the Korean Paralympic Committee, and the Busan Disabled Sports Association (Chairman Park Hyung-jun). It is hosted by the Korea Deaf Sports Federation and jointly organized by the Busan Disabled Sports Association and the Busan Deaf Sports Federation.

This year’s event will feature a delegation of about 450 participants (212 athletes and 238 officials and related personnel) from seven cities and provinces nationwide. The participants will compete in the athlete division (badminton, bowling, athletics, table tennis) and the amateur division (gateball, shulren, weightlifting/exhibition events), showcasing the skills they have honed.

The opening ceremony will be held at 6 p.m. on the 5th at the Sajik Sports Complex Gymnasium, with attendees including Chung Jin-wan, Chairman of the Korean Paralympic Committee, National Assembly member Hwang Bo-seung-hee, and other event officials, who will encourage the participating athletes.

Lee Jong-hak, President of the Korea Deaf Sports Federation, said, “Given the challenging circumstances under which the event is being held, I hope all participating athletes fully demonstrate their abilities and complete the competition safely without injuries,” expressing his thoughts on the event preparations.

Mayor Park Hyung-jun stated, “I hope the National Deaf Sports Festival will lead Busan to become even more dynamic,” and added, “We will do our best to make Busan a city of life sports where all citizens can enjoy sports.”