grapplegraphics.com After a 17-year career with Lotte, Park Jong-yoon (formerly of Lotte) was named the first head coach of Gimcheon University, which was founded last September. Park recruited his close friend Kwon Hyuk (formerly of Samsung) as pitching coach and Choi Jun-seok (formerly of Doosan) as an interlocutor, and together with 25 new members from across the country, they will compete in the 2024 U-League College Baseball Championship.굿모닝토토 주소
The three were seniors and juniors at Pocheol Technical High School (now Pohang Steel Works) and are “Anglo-Japanese only friends. Having never won a trophy in high school, the coaches dream of winning a national championship in their first season with their new amateur team.
Gimcheon is known as a mecca for local sports, with prestigious teams such as the Gimcheon Commerce Professional Soccer Team, the Road Corporation Professional Volleyball Team, and the Gimcheon City Office Badminton Team based at the Sports Complex. However, baseball was not one of them. However, with the creation of the first baseball team and the completion of a baseball stadium, as well as the selection of a professional baseball player from Gimcheon in the 2024 KBO Rookie Draft, baseball fever has been blazing recently.
“Based on this good news, we will try to create a baseball boom in Gimcheon,” said Park Jong-yoon. One of the two baseball fields scheduled for completion in late November in Gimcheon’s Sinyin Neighborhood Park will be used by the Gimcheon University baseball team. “In the future, the Gimcheon Baseball Field will be the cornerstone of Gimcheon’s rebirth as an amaeba baseball tournament center by utilizing the geographical advantage of Gimcheon, which is located in the center of Korea,” Park said, “and the Gimcheon University baseball team will be the centerpiece of the local community, loved by the locals and inspiring local pride.”
Regarding concerns about his lack of experience as a coach after retiring from the professional ranks, he said, “There is a first time for everyone,” and confessed, “I have come to this point with a lot of preparation, studying, and seeking advice from senior baseball players to reduce trial and error.”
“Some universities that have recently announced the creation of a baseball team are limited in the supply of players and disappear without a sound, but Gimcheon University’s baseball team has built conditions for players to focus on baseball by preparing a dedicated stadium, indoor practice field, dormitory, and gym,” Park said.
“Our goal is to build a competitive baseball team, produce professional baseball players, and become a team loved by the people of western Gyeongsangbuk-do,” Park said, adding, “Rather than staying in fear of failure, we will unfold our second baseball life with passion and ambition without regret.”