14 Teams and 350 Players from Across Korea
Expected Boost to the Local Economy
Uiryeong-gun in South Gyeongsang Province has launched the "11th Uiryeong County Governor's National Middle School Baseball Tournament" at the Uiryeong Eco-friendly Baseball Stadium, kicking off eight days of intense competition.
The tournament, which opened on February 1, brought together around 350 players and staff from 14 teams nationwide, including teams from Seoul, Incheon, Daejeon, Sejong, Jeonju, and Jeju.
In particular, it is expected that more than 500 people, including players, parents, and other officials, will stay in Uiryeong during the tournament period, which is anticipated to inject vitality into the local commercial district that is typically subdued in winter.
Uiryeong-gun is positioning this event not just as a simple sports competition, but as an opportunity to revitalize the local economy. In fact, as part of its "sports marketing" efforts, the county is actively implementing incentive policies, such as subsidizing 50% of training costs for off-season training teams (up to 1.5 million won per team).
The participating teams will play group league matches until February 8 to sharpen their game sense in real competition. During this period, spending on accommodation, meals, and other expenses by players and cheering squads is expected to provide tangible benefits to local small business owners.
Meanwhile, Uiryeong-gun is currently building a youth hostel to expand its accommodation infrastructure and plans to gradually strengthen the foundation for attracting off-season training camps and various sports competitions in the future.
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