Governor Kim Jin-tae: "Gangwon-Alberta Sports Exchange Will Continue"

50th Anniversary Sister City Official Visit to Alberta, Canada Begins
Visit to Calgary Olympic Park, Benchmarking Olympic Facilities

Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, began his official visit schedule on the 22nd (Korean time) in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Gangwon-Alberta sisterhood.

This visit was promoted to celebrate the achievements of 50 years of cooperation with Alberta and to redefine the relationship as an ‘economic cooperation partner’ in the future, marking the 50th anniversary of the sisterhood with Alberta, Canada.

Gangwon Province Governor Kim Jin-tae officially visited Alberta, Canada on the 22nd (Korean time) and gave a greeting ahead of the friendly match between the Gangwon Provincial Office's disabled ice hockey team and the Calgary club team held at Calgary Olympic Park.

On the same day, Governor Kim visited Calgary Olympic Park, met and encouraged the Gangwon Provincial Office’s para ice hockey team (Bears), who are training locally, and watched a friendly match against the Calgary club team Scorpions. The Bears won the match 3:2 after a close game.

The Gangwon Provincial Office para ice hockey team, consisting of 15 members including coaches, trainers, and players, is staying in Calgary from September 19 to 29 to acquire advanced skills and tactics and to strengthen their performance through team training and joint training with local club teams.

Gangwon Province Governor Kim Jin-tae drops the puck to start the game in a friendly match between the Gangwon Province Disabled Ice Hockey Team and the Calgary Club Team.

Governor Kim also visited the Canadian Sports Commission to hear about the management status of the legacy of the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics and discussed ways to apply it to the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic facilities. Along with this, after touring Calgary Olympic Park, which consists of venues for skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, biathlon, ski jumping, sledding events, an indoor ice rink, and a gymnastics center, he met and encouraged bobsleigh athletes including Cynthia Appiah (female), who participated in the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, at the bobsleigh start training center and experienced pushing a bobsleigh sled together.

Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and Alberta share the common experience of hosting the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics and the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, and have promoted youth sports exchanges in 14 disciplines over 34 years since 1986.

Both regions agreed to resume sports exchanges, which had been suspended since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, starting in 2025 (curling), and specified a focus on sports exchanges in the Gangwon-Alberta sisterhood 50th anniversary memorandum of understanding.

Governor Kim Jin-tae of Gangwon Province and his delegation took a commemorative photo with the players before the "50th Anniversary of Gangwon Province-Alberta Exchange" friendly match.

Governor Kim said at the para ice hockey team’s friendly match, “The Bears, Gangwon Province’s para ice hockey team, is one of the teams that produces many national representatives,” and added, “I hope that our team and the Scorpions team will have an opportunity to grow here in Canada, the birthplace of para ice hockey, regardless of the outcome.” He also stated, “Today’s game is one of the clear proofs showing the close cooperative relationship between Gangwon and Alberta, and we will continue exchanges between the province and Alberta sports teams and youth sports cooperation in the future.”