Myeongseo Elementary School has No Worries

Even if we Lose 1-19, It’s Okay… Myeongseo Elementary School has No Worries even if the Base for Women’s Soccer Decreases

Even female students play soccer in their daily lives... Coach Lee Jin-hee , who started his ‘player career’ to immerse himself in his hobby, said, “I joined because I felt the fun of soccer… the hobby class is the player class.”

Around noon on June 3, 2021, the first match of Group 4 of the elementary school group stage of the 29th Queen's National Women's Soccer Tournament had just ended.

This match, held at Samcheok Sports Complex in Gangwon-do, resulted in a record score difference.

The women's soccer team of Myeongseo Elementary School in Uichang-gu, Changwon lost 1-19 to Garim Elementary School in Incheon.

The game was already decided. 카지노사이트위키

The first half score was already 0-8.

Garimcho, who did not let down the reins, scored 11 more goals in the second half.

Myeongseo Elementary School lost again 0-8 to Namsan Elementary School in North Chungcheong Province two days later.

Looking back on that time, Myeongseo Elementary School coach Lee Jin-hee said in an interview at the school on the 25th of last month, "I was worried that it might have hurt the children," but "I don't care."

In women's soccer, there is often a score difference of more than 10 goals.

Due to the nature of the sport with a narrow base, teams are formed that attract ordinary students to participate in the competition.

This is because there are no players.

If a key player gets hurt, it will be a disaster.

Even in competitions, teams with ‘minimum number of people’ are often seen.

This was the case for Uicho and Garimcho, the only elementary school girls' soccer teams in Seoul and Incheon.

Both teams had only eight players participate in the 8-a-side spring Korea Women's Football Federation match held last month.

Uicho played 5 games and Garimcho played 4 games with 8 players without replacement.

There is a reason why Director Lee, who has been in charge of Myeongseo Elementary School since 2017, can be confident.

No matter how big of a score they lose, this school's women's soccer team operates without a hitch.

This is because there is a steady supply of players.

Other women's soccer coaches are having a hard time visiting various places to find new members.

However, Coach Lee has no trouble recruiting players.

This is true even though there is no camp at Myeongseo Elementary School.

Women's soccer teams that do not operate separate training facilities nationwide usually find it difficult to survive.

In men's soccer, there are relatively many schools with athletic departments, so it is easy to find a team to play without having to live in a dormitory.

In women's soccer, where it is difficult to find a sports team, if there is no training camp, the burden of commuting to school is high, making it difficult to make a living as a player.

Myeongseocho is different.

The secret is ‘in-house supply and demand of players’.

The favorite sport of the female students at this school is soccer, and they intentionally register as professional athletes and participate in the sports team.

The reason is simple.

This is because you have to be a professional player to be able to compete against opponents from all over the country in competitions held by the Korea Women's Football Federation, including Queen Ki.

They join the women's soccer team not to succeed as a player, but to focus more on 'leisure' activities.

In fact, on this morning, female students were engrossed in soccer on the artificial turf ground at Myeongseo Elementary School.

Among the children screaming and shooting, there were no male students to be found.

Myeongseo Elementary School holds the ‘Myeongseo World Cup’, a class competition.

Both men's and women's divisions are open.

These students, who were separated by orange and yellow vests and kicked the ball, also came out to the ground to prepare for the upcoming class game.

Coach Lee said, “It is usually difficult for female students to be exposed to soccer, but while playing the World Cup at Myeongseo Elementary School, they felt, ‘Soccer is so fun,’ and they joined the team.”

There are a total of 334 students at Myeongseo Elementary School.

About half of them are female students, and the women's soccer team has 15 students (2 in the hobby class and 13 in the athlete class).

One out of 11 female students is a member of the soccer team.

Recently, the ‘Korean sports crisis theory’ has emerged in the sports world.

At the Paris Olympics, which opens in July, the number of athletes participating will fall below 200 for the first time in 48 years since the 1976 Montreal Games.

The main cause is the weakening of the sports base due to population decline.

The women’s soccer world is also in tears.

The number of professional female soccer players decreased by about 15% compared to 10 years ago in 2014 (1,765).

As of August last year, 1,570 people were registered with the Football Association.

Among these, a total of 1,113 players are classified as youth players under the age of 18.

As expected, it has shrunk by about 17% compared to 10 years ago (1,341 people).

Myeongseocho also could not avoid the trend of low birth rates.

A few years ago, there were 4 to 5 classes per grade, but now there are only 2 to 3 classes.

However, the women's soccer team has withstood the trends of the times and maintains the number of members between 15 and 20.

Last year, she also passed the preliminary round at the Queen's Cup (1 win, 2 losses) and the Fall Korea Women's Football Federation (2 wins, 2 losses).

Compared to the prestigious era of the past, which produced leading figures such as Yeo Min-ji (Gyeongju Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power) and Lee Jeong-eun (Hwacheon KSPO), who won the 2010 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, it may be considered a poor performance. It is also law.

But Director Lee is satisfied.

He said, "According to the regulations, they are professional athletes, but in reality, they are ordinary students, and they have achieved this level of achievement.

In our case, the athlete class is a hobby class, and the hobby class is an athlete class."

Can the ‘Myeongseocho model’, where the boundaries between professional athletes and ordinary students are blurred, become generalized?

Coach Lee believes this should be the case at least at the under-12 level.

I believe that only when there are more children who know the joy of sports will the number of people who want to grow into 'elites' increase.

To achieve this, Director Lee suggests that our society must recognize sports as ‘a method of education.’

In fact, it is said that Myeongseo Elementary School does not have any separate membership fees.

Training costs are supported at the provincial and provincial offices of education, and schools also contribute to operating costs.

Thanks to the educational authorities' recognition of the educational value of 'soccer' at Myeongseo Elementary School, Coach Lee was also relieved of the burden of having to produce good grades.

There is no athletics department at Myeongseo Elementary School that is run ‘only to enhance the reputation of the school.’

Among the players who trained after school that day, the shortest was in the low 130 cm and the tallest was 165 cm.

Although there is a difference of over 30cm, we trained together and played on the field together.

Ms. Danbee Jo, who is of average height, fell during the competition and grabbed her leg.

Then, a shout of “Hey, stand up quickly!” suddenly came out from among my colleagues.

Miss Cho seemed embarrassed and immediately joined in the pressure.

Coach Lee said, "If soccer is viewed as a part of education, there will be no pressure on grades.

We need to approach it by making children more aware of sports."

He said, "The kids on our team no longer cry when they fall.

They just shake themselves off and get up.

These are all things the kids have learned through soccer."