‘The Ascending Tigers’, ‘The Ascending Bombers’…
Whenever a Tigers player appears in the KBO, the name ‘Mt. Musan’ is always mentioned. The symbolism of the name Mudongsan, which proudly protects Gwangju, the center of Honam, is great. Known as “Mother Mountain” by the people of Gwangju, the mountain is an integral part of the KIA Tigers.
The name ‘Tigers’ is also inseparable from the city of Gwangju, just like Mudongsan. The team was founded in 1982 with the catchphrase, “Let’s plant the pride of Honam people through baseball. The Tigers, the pride and joy of Honam, have been both awe-inspiring and terrifying to baseball fans across the country, as they are an unstoppable team that has won all 11 Korean Series from 1983, the second year of professional baseball, to 2017. This history has been carried on even after the team changed its name from Haetae to KIA.
On the 17th at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, Mount Musan and the Tigers promised a healthy partnership. Kia, which signed a business agreement with Mt. Asan National Park in April, held a ‘Mt. Asan Day’ event to which officials were invited. The company also signed a donation agreement with Kim Do-young (20) and Yoon Young-chul (19), the future pillars of Two-Ta, to raise funds to protect the mountains.
Baseball, which was launched with the catchphrase “Dreams and hopes for children,” is now well into middle age, well over 40 years old. Each team grew up with a distinct color and a lot of love from the locals, and it has become the representative sport of Korea with 8 million spectators. However, while professional baseball has become a huge industry, the teams’ unique colors and sense of community have faded.
Although cheering culture has become the code of the ballpark, the love for a team that is different from ‘me’ is bound to cool down, and it is becoming a factor that makes it difficult to step into the ballpark. The question mark over the future of professional baseball is whether it will remain as popular as it is today. That’s why teams are working to strengthen their local communities and take steps to keep up. 먹튀검증
The picture of teams with tradition and history engaging with the local community is a spectacular one. The Lotte Giants, who have been defending Busan since the beginning of the KBO, have become one of the league’s specialties with their annual “Camellia Day,” where they dye the entire stadium red with camellia-colored uniforms. The Tigers, who boast an equally storied history and are the most decorated team in baseball, make for an even better picture.
Gwangju-Honam’s famous Myeongsan Mountain and the Tigers, the national team of Gwangju-Honam. It was a short meeting of 15 minutes, but it had a lot of meaning.