University sports teams represent their schools and partake in various matches against rival teams from other schools, contributing to a thrilling college experience. However, Ewha has not had a competitive sports team since the last remaining basketball and volleyball team disbanded almost 20 years ago.
According to Professor Seungha Park of the Department of Kinesiology & Sports Studies at Ewha, student-athletes used to be recruited through a specific admissions process that took into consideration applicants’ performance in each of their respective sports. However, as the admissions process underwent revision to test applicants’ all-around athletic abilities more than specific talents, it was made difficult for team sports athletes to be granted admission.
It was also challenging for the school to support team sports due to financial and circumstantial issues. Therefore, changes were made so that more athletes of individual sports, including figure skating, cycling, and swimming, would be recruited instead.
Ultimately, the sports admissions policy was shut down entirely after a corrupt admission incident of a student-athlete was revealed in 2016. While Ewha does not have any official sports teams, there are 16 sports clubs with active members. These clubs play popular sports including soccer, baseball, and basketball, alongside more niche sports like la crosse, jujitsu, and kendo. Despite the absence of official sports teams, Ewha students can participate in these clubs and incorporate sports into their college experiences.
Most other major universities do have their own sports teams that represent their schools and participate in matches with opponent teams from other schools.
Lee Junseo, a second-year Physical Education student at Korea University, plays center for the official Korea University Ice Hockey Team. As a professional player, he trains for more than three hours every day with his team, and during the two months of preparation for regular matches, his team trains five hours a day.
The biggest difference between sports clubs and official sports teams is that official sports teams participate in many competitions. One of the biggest Korean university leagues, the U-League, consists of 15 to 20 matches.
Lee underscored the significance of competitive sports within the college experience as he reminisced on last year’s ice hockey match against Yonsei University.
“The regular matches are very special in that they provide all students with an opportunity to release their academic stress in just two days,” he emphasized.
Lee also added that since the team trains for a whole year anticipating the regular matches, singing Korea University’s chants after a victorious match is one of the biggest thrills and satisfactions of all time.
According to the Korea University Sport Federation, there is no women’s university in all of South Korea that is actively recruiting members for a female competitive sports team. On the other hand, there are 68 different categories of sports that coeducational Korean universities are readily recruiting members for.
It is evident that the revitalization of Ewha’s competitive team sports scene would serve as a cornerstone to enlivening the women’s sports scene. Yet, it is also clear that the women’s sports scene is not solely impacted by Ewha’s contributions. Furthermore, the endeavors necessary to reach this revitalization would pose several realistic challenges for the school.
Professor Park instead expressed his longing for the student sports clubs to get more recognition.
“Ewha has many student clubs that cover a vast register of sports,” Professor Park said. “By focusing more on promoting these sports clubs and spreading their laudable achievements, we would be doing more than enough to contribute to creating an enjoyable sports culture.”