[Book of the Week] Inspiration from the Mediterranean

This is a collection of essays that examines sports events such as the Olympics and the World Cup from historical and cultural perspectives. The author has worked as a sports journalist for over 30 years, covering major sporting events, and is currently a professor at Korea National Sport University. As a published poet, the author explores how modern Korean society has embraced sports as a cultural phenomenon, using beautifully crafted and poetic language.

The author focuses on the political implications of the Olympics, developing discourse around keywords such as power and messaging. For example, regarding the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the author defines it as follows:

The Olympics are political. In fact, the Olympics are politics itself. They are a complex mix of politics, economics, nationalism, and hegemonism-a battlefield where desires clash. All Olympics resemble each other like siblings. The Olympics declare and orate. Their message is condensed into the grand opening ceremony. The 1988 Seoul Olympics, before being a declaration of a 'newly industrialized country' that had risen from the ruins of the Korean War to achieve modernization, was the final song of a military dictatorship. (pp. 141-142, Opening Ceremony and Propaganda)

The journey of South Korea, which passed through the stages of developing country, newly industrialized country, and advanced country, is also reflected through Dongdaemun Stadium and Jangchung Gymnasium.

Did I doze off for a moment? Evenings in developing countries began early. Darkness soon deepened, and the night was tranquil. As if submerged in ink, even with eyes wide open, there was only darkness all around. The boy was startled awake by the sound of his father turning on the radio. A humming static. Then, a slightly excited voice came through. "Greetings to our compatriots in the homeland. This is Manila, the capital of the eternal summer country, the Philippines..." The darkness as if submerged in ink, the endless distance from the Philippines to Korea, the silent empathy between father and son. And now, the distance between life and death fills that space. Even that seemingly eternal distance will one day disappear. (pp. 91-92, Gymnasium and Stadium)

The author confesses, "For a journalist covering sports, major events like the Olympics or the World Cup inevitably become milestones in life." He characterizes this book as an autobiography, stating that he wrote it to summarize and reflect on both his experiences as a journalist and the results of his academic inquiry.

Inspiration from the Mediterranean | Written by Heo Jinseok | Geulnurim | 284 pages | 20,000 won