Locals lend hand to bring Nepalese to Universiade
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Members of Nepal’s delegation to the 2015 Gwangju Universiade pose for a photo before moving into the Athletes Village in Gwangju on July 3. / Courtesy of GUOC
By Baek Byung-yeul
GWANGJU ― The Nepali delegation went through many ups and downs before landing in Gwangju to compete at the Universiade.
Though Nepali athletes had prepared for the big sports event for collegians and university students, they faced difficult choices to abandon their dreams when their country decided not to send a delegation after a massive earthquake devastated Nepal in April.
All seemed hopeless, but with help from the Gwangju Universiade Organizing Committee (GUOC) and Gwangju residents, Nepal was able to send 33 people.
“Nepal notified us that they will not be able to send their delegation and we’ve decided to collect donations for them,” an official from the GUOC said Thursday.
“Although the amount of money was not enough, it helped 15 athletes to buy their airplane tickets.”
Yoon Jang-hyun, president of the Gwangju Universiade Organizing Committee (GUOC) and mayor of Gwangju, visited the Nepali delegation Wednesday to encourage the athletes.
“I would like to encourage athletes from Nepal to do their best to the very end with courage,” Yoon told the delegation at the athletes’ village.
“I also give a very big hand to the Nepali athletes as they took part in the Universiade to give hope to their people. The 1.5 million Gwangju residents sincerely support Nepal so that it can overcome such hard times.”
The Nepali delegation offered its thanks: “Without help from Gwangju, we would not have been able to talk about hope. Though we didn’t have enough training, we are trying to do our best, which would be a great comfort to our countrymen.”
Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency also reached out a helping hand to the Nepali delegation, sending training shoes worth 1.7 million won. The Korean Alpine Federation donated outdoor equipment.
Along with help from the GUOC and local community, Nepali fencers were also supported by the Korea Fencing Federation. Fencers Sanjeep Lama and Rakhi Sharma have been provided with masks, jackets, blades and bags worth 1.1 million won ($980). The federation also paid for the two fencers to stay at the athletes' village.