Badminton is a sport that clearly demonstrates the expansion of the base of daily sports. The number of daily sports enthusiasts increased rapidly from 568 in 2022 to 12,115 this year, and the number of sports clubs also increased from 32 to 1,273 during the same period. The fact that it is easily accessible and helps improve health has been a great help in expanding the base. The photo shows club members active at the Mokpo Sports Badminton Club, which has been running for 5 years with 40 members. Photo provided by Shin Seong-min, head coach of Mokpo Sports Badminton Club
Badminton is a sport that clearly demonstrates the expansion of the base of daily sports. The number of daily sports enthusiasts increased rapidly from 568 in 2022 to 12,115 this year, and the number of sports clubs also increased from 32 to 1,273 during the same period. The fact that it is easily accessible and helps improve health has been a great help in expanding the base. The photo shows club members active at the Mokpo Sports Badminton Club, which has been running for 5 years with 40 members. Photo provided by Shin Seong-min, head coach of Mokpo Sports Badminton Club
Badminton is a sport that clearly demonstrates the expansion of the base of daily sports. The number of daily sports enthusiasts increased rapidly from 568 in 2022 to 12,115 this year, and the number of sports clubs also increased from 32 to 1,273 during the same period. The fact that it is easily accessible and helps improve health has been a great help in expanding the base. The photo shows club members active at the Mokpo Sports Badminton Club, which has been running for 5 years with 40 members. Photo provided by Shin Seong-min, head coach of Mokpo Sports Badminton Club
Badminton is a sport that clearly demonstrates the expansion of the base of daily sports. The number of daily sports enthusiasts increased rapidly from 568 in 2022 to 12,115 this year, and the number of sports clubs also increased from 32 to 1,273 during the same period. The fact that it is easily accessible and helps improve health has been a great help in expanding the base. The photo shows club members active at the Mokpo Sports Badminton Club, which has been running for 5 years with 40 members. Photo provided by Shin Seong-min, head coach of Mokpo Sports Badminton Club
The base of lifestyle sports is expanding day by day. According to the Korea Sports Council’s sports support portal, as of October 21, the number of adult sports enthusiasts reached 196,949. There was an increase of 29.4% compared to 2022 (152,156 people) when these statistics were first compiled. The number of sports clubs also approximately doubled from 6,259 to 11,678 during this period.
Among all 61 sports, the one with the most notable increase is badminton. The number of club members increased rapidly from 568 in 2022 to 12,115 this year. During the same period, the number of badminton sports clubs also increased from 32 to 1,273. It is a result of the advantages of easy accessibility as you can enjoy it anywhere as long as you have a racket and a shuttlecock, and low threshold because the rules are easy to understand. Naturally, the demand for living athletes is high.
Sports clubs faithfully reflected this demand. We have put together a fruitful program that goes beyond simple lessons or court openings, and includes video analysis and lectures for members. The Mokpo Sports Badminton Club, founded in 2020, is a representative example. Coach Shin Seong-min (40) and other coaches are working together with 40 members based at the Mokpo Science University Gymnasium. They train hard for about 3 hours, 5 days a week from 6 PM to 9 PM.
Coach Shin reflected on the fact that the demand for daily sports has greatly increased since the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19) pandemic. He, who was active in a private club until 2020, says that at that time there were not as many club members as there are now. However, it was analyzed that the number of hobbyists has increased rapidly due to the influx of young people in their 10s to 30s following the pandemic.
Director Shin said, “The majority of club members start exercising to improve their health. I was surprised to see a lot of demand for lectures on weight loss and diet. I feel that both the interest in and the base for lifestyle sports have grown compared to before.”
As Coach Shin said, badminton enthusiasts say that the biggest positive function of daily sports is improving health. The same goes for Jang Jeong-hee (53), an original member of the Mokpo Sports Badminton Club. I succeeded in losing weight through consistent exercise, my immunity became stronger, and my allergies significantly reduced.
Mr. Jang smiled, saying, “Regaining my health through badminton gave me vitality in life. The badminton club competitions were mainly for doubles, so I also had fun interacting with people from other regions.”
They predicted that the demand for daily sports would continue to rise. Director Shin predicted, “The average age of club members has dropped significantly since the pandemic. Considering the fact that there are many cases where they continue to be active, the base of recreational sports will continue to expand.” Mr. Jang also added, “I feel that the quality of classes has improved a lot as the demand from club members has increased. If the current trend continues, the base of recreational sports will naturally expand.”
Reporter Kwon Jae-min jmart220@donga.com
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