[Stage Voices]The Value of the Olympics That Cannot Be Measured in Numbers

Decentralized Milan-Cortina Hosting
A Milestone for the "2036 Jeonju Olympics"

The 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics are reaching their midpoint. As the Games have proceeded smoothly and stably so far without any major incidents, attention is also turning to the future course of Jeonju, which is bidding to host the 2036 Summer Olympics. This is because Jeonju is also aiming for a multi-city, decentralized hosting model similar to the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

This Olympics is the first in history to be hosted in a decentralized format across multiple cities. The aim is to minimize the enormous hosting costs and the burden on the environment. There were concerns that longer travel distances between venues would complicate tournament operations and strain athletes' physical condition, but no clear problems have emerged so far. If Jeonju succeeds in its bid, the burden of such physical distances will be relatively smaller. The straight-line distance between Milan and Cortina is about 400 kilometers, which is longer than the straight-line distance between Seoul and Busan (about 325 kilometers). If the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics demonstrate the efficiency of decentralized hosting, it could have a positive impact on Jeonju's bid.

In recent years, negative perceptions of hosting large-scale sporting events have been growing, mainly because they are seen as not being economically profitable.

However, President Lee Jaemyung expressed a strong willingness to bid, stating at a New Year press conference on January 21 that "continuously hosting international sporting events helps national development and revitalizes industries."

Choi Gaon is performing a trick during her first run in the women's ski and snowboard halfpipe final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, held on the 13th (Korean time) at Livigno Snowpark in Italy. Photo by Yonhap News

The bid to host the 2036 Summer Olympics should be positively considered in many respects. First of all, since a non-capital region is stepping forward to host the Games, it can be expected to contribute to balanced regional development.

At a press conference on February 12 to mark six months in office, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Choi Hwiyeong mentioned next year's Chungcheong Universiade and said the government would actively support it from the perspective of balanced regional development, which is an important state agenda of the current administration. The Chungcheong Universiade, to be held in August next year, will be jointly hosted by four local governments: Daejeon Metropolitan City, Sejong Special Self-Governing City, Chungcheongbuk-do Province, and Chungcheongnam-do Province.

Another expected benefit of the 2036 Jeonju Summer Olympics is "integration." Korean society is currently experiencing various forms of division, including political polarization, generational conflict, and regional antagonism. For those who remember the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, the unifying power of sports, which brought society together as one, will be etched more vividly than for anyone else.

The emotional impact of sports, often described as an "unscripted drama," should not be overlooked. One of the greatest moving moments in sports is when an athlete who had long been overlooked quietly endures hardship and finally emerges as the protagonist. Snowboarder Kim Sanggyom, who delivered the first medal for the Korean delegation at these Olympics, is a symbolic example. He did manual labor while nurturing his dream of winning an Olympic medal, and at the relatively late age of 37, he finally captured a valuable silver medal at his fourth Olympics. On the 13th, despite suffering an injury in the snowboard halfpipe final, high school snowboarder Choi Gaon refused to give up, attempted her third run, and ultimately seized the gold medal, leaving a deep impression on her peers about the meaning of challenge and courage.

Major sporting events carry enormous intangible value that goes far beyond the economic value that can be measured in numbers alone. Moreover, 2036 marks the 100th anniversary of the late Sohn Keechung becoming the first Korean to win an Olympic gold medal at the Berlin Summer Olympics, which can make that year all the more special and meaningful for us.