S. Korean city of Pusan gears up for 2002 Games

BANGKOK (JP): With the 13th Asian Games drawing to a close, the South Korean city of Pusan is reportedly gearing up well for the next event in 2002.

The Pusan Asian Games Organizing Committee (PAGOC) was quick to promise on Saturday "the greatest Asiad ever in history," shrugging off worries that it will be overshadowed by the World Cup, which the country is hosting in the same year.

South Korea and Japan will jointly host the soccer World Cup, the biggest sporting event on earth in terms of audience and duration, most likely in June 2002. The Pusan Games will take place four months later.

"The schedules of both major events are different, so we think there are no problems with staging two big events in the same year," Mayor of Pusan Ahn Sang-young told a media conference.

"Moreover, the World Cup will be held in 10 different places across Korea, while the Asiad venues are located in Pusan city and its surroundings," he added.

He said Pusan, the second largest city in South Korea after Seoul, had learned a lot from other cities on how to make such a major event a success.

"PAGOC sent its team of observers to the 1998 World Cup in France, the Asiad in Bangkok and it plans to send others to the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000," he said.

Pusan is the second noncapital city to host an Asiad after Hiroshima in Japan four years ago.

Ahn said that despite the economic crunch, the PAGOC was upbeat about raising the required Won 9 trillion (US$850 million) to finance the event.

He said construction work of the main stadium and other facilities had started and was expected to be completed on Nov. 15, 1999. The projects will cost PAGOC $500 million.

The 80,000-seat stadium will be the venue for the opening and closing ceremonies and also for the soccer and track and field events.

The 14th Asiad will run from Sept. 29 to Oct. 14, 2002. It will feature 32 sports, 17 of which will be held in Kangso, Keumjong and Keumkok districts while the other 15 will take place in Sajik, Pukyong, Masan and Changwon.

The Pusan Games will introduce modern pentathlon, while scrapping golf, snooker, kabbadi, rugby and squash, from the sports on show in Bangkok,

PAGOC will also build 26 apartment blocks in the athletes' village, which will be able to accommodate about 15,000 athletes, officials and journalists covering the event. The apartments, located in Yonji-dong Pusanji-ku, will provide athletes with sports equipment for practice.

Hoon Jang, the mayor's adviser on International Relations, said that soon after the closing of the Asiad, PAGOC would officially launch its Asiad campaign.

He dismissed speculation that cash-strapped South Korea would cancel the hosting of the Asiad.

India has also bid to stage the 2002 Asiad, in case Pusan pulls out.

Pusan has named a seagull as the 2002 Asiad mascot and will use as its motto the phrase "Ever Onward." (yan)