By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
Some 500 international students in Seoul Saturday gathered in Gwangnaru Park in eastern Seoul to participate in a sport event hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government.
Named ``Seoul International Students Sport Event,'' the students participated in various sports, such as football, basketball, volleyball and relay and Korean traditional games such as jegi chagi, or shuttlecock kicking, and tuho or arrow throwing.
``It was fun to join this event, and make a lot of friends from other countries, who are studying here,'' Han Zhou Guang, a Chinese student from Yonsei University, said. ``Sports events made it a lot easier for us to bond together.''
The inaugural sport event for international students was held as part of the city government's project to make the Seoul a ``truly global city.'' Previously, the city launched a forum for international students here to pool their ideas and suggestions for the city and opened the Seoul Global Center for the convenience of foreign residents and travelers here.
``The sport event aims to offer international students the opportunity to understand each other and exchange ideas to better know about Korean society,'' Jason Kim, manager at the Seoul Global Center, said. ``Through this first event, we will keep making an effort to hold various cultural and academic events to help international students here to build a network, better adjust themselves to society and find a way to contribute to society.''
For more information, visit https://global.seoul.go.kr or call (02) 1688-0120.