After participating in Korea’s two premier matches in Kabaddi, Former Miss Korea Woo Hee-jun promoted the unpopular sport in an Asiad interview.
The Asian Games provide an opportunity for athletes to compete in up to 40 sports and 61 disciplines. However, a few of these sports, such as Kabaddi, are not as widely covered as the well-known ones, such as cricket, fencing, and athletics, as well as weightlifting and swimming. They’re exposure in the news outlets and social media platforms is minimal. So, even though they’ve been a part of the prestigious event for decades, a lot of people are still unaware of their existence.
Woo Hee-jun on Kabaddi
In the interview, Woo Hee-jun also revealed her past experiences and expressed her hope that more attention will now be focused on her as a Kabaddi athlete in the future.
“Actually, Kabaddi is a very unfamiliar sport in Korea, so I think from now on, hopefully, this is going to be a starting point for the Korean people getting to know about the sport, what is Kabaddi and how it is played, how to do exercise and training and stuff..”, Woo said.
Woo Hee-jun, a former Miss Korea winner and an military officer, who is now competing for Korean national Kabaddi team in Hangzhou Asian Games, bares all about her love for the sport and hopes that people's attention can be placed on who she is rather than who she was.… pic.twitter.com/zFfZR3SaS2
— The 19th Asian Games Hangzhou Official (@19thAGofficial) October 4, 2023
Kabaddi and how it’s played
Kabaddi originated in India, and its basic rules were officially laid down in 1923.
Basically, this contact sport pits two teams against each other on a field with seven players each. The field is divided into two halves, with the teams positioned on either side.
Whoever goes first has to send one of their members, known as a raider, into their opponent’s territory and tag as many people as they can without getting caught or tackled. The raider then has to come back to their side of the field while shouting “Kabaddi!”. If successful, that team will then get points for each person their raider tagged.
Kabaddi in Asiad
Kabaddi has been a part of the Asian Games since 1990, and according to Olympics.com, India is by far the most successful team in the sport, with their men’s team having won eight gold medals and their women’s team bagging three gold medals.
However, in the previous edition of the Asiad, the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games, Team Iran stunned India with a score of 27-18. This year the Indian team is optimistic as they are confident in their powerful roster.
“The Indian men’s team is a very strong side. It’s the best team that could’ve been selected, and I am confident that we will win the Gold medal.”, Gold Medallist Ram Mehar Singh said, as per wionews.
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The photo above is from a YouTube screenshot