'Don't fear failure — challenge yourself with confidence': Euisun Chung rallies Korean archers in Japan

Hyundai Motor Group chairman dines with EMC athletes Tuesday, attends recurve qualifying

Chung set to cheer at EMC team events Wednesday

Hyundai Motor Group provides tailored, all-around support including dedicated rest facilities

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung poses for a photo with South Korea's national archery team. From left: Park Jeong-yun, Park Ye-rin, Kang Yeon-seo, Korea Archery Association President Euisun Chung, Kim Jong-ho, Choi Eun-gyu and Choi Yong-hee. [Hyundai Motor Group]

Euisun Chung, chairman of Hyundai Motor Group and president of the Korea Archery Association, traveled to Japan to personally encourage South Korea's national archery team and boost morale.

Chung arrived in Japan on Tuesday and immediately sat down for lunch with the men's and women's EMC athletes and coaching staff competing for gold in the team events Wednesday, Hyundai Motor Group said.

The meal was held in a dedicated rest space that Hyundai Motor Group and the Korea Archery Association had set up exclusively for the athletes' meals and downtime. Attending were EMC athletes Choi Yong-hee, Kim Jong-ho, Choi Eun-gyu, Park Jeong-yun, Park Ye-rin and Kang Yeon-seo, along with head coach Sergio Fang and the rest of the EMC coaching staff.

Chung personally encouraged each EMC athlete, telling them, "I am proud of all of you for making it this far despite the difficult conditions." He added, "Don't be nervous — just shoot the way you always do, relaxed and natural. Don't fear failure. Trust in the effort you have put in and challenge yourself with confidence."

In the afternoon, Chung moved to Okazaki Archery Field to observe the recurve women's individual qualifying round. He also encouraged recurve athletes Kang Chae-young and Oh Ye-jin, who had advanced to the quarterfinals, as well as Lee Yun-ji and Korea Archery Association officials.

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung has lunch with the men's and women's EMC athletes and coaching staff competing for team gold, shortly after arriving in Japan on Tuesday. [Hyundai Motor Group]

On Wednesday, Chung is expected to watch the EMC women's team event in the morning and the mixed team and men's team events in the afternoon, cheering the athletes on from the stands. He is also scheduled to have lunch with the recurve men's and women's national team athletes.

Hyundai Motor Group and the Korea Archery Association focused their efforts on ensuring athletes could perform at their peak and give their all at the competition, providing comprehensive support throughout. The organizations conducted multiple advance site visits in Japan and arrived ahead of the team to thoroughly check all preparations.

Hyundai Motor Group secured exclusive accommodations in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, for the archery team, allowing athletes to focus entirely on competition without inconvenience during their stay. The hotel, located about 20 minutes from Okazaki Archery Field, gave each athlete a private room to comfortably recover their strength and concentration after training and competition.

A nearby café was also converted into a dedicated rest space for the team, where athletes could relax and eat during breaks between events. The facility was upgraded and remodeled to maintain peak performance conditions, and a rest trailer fitted with sofas and cots was installed to allow athletes to get adequate rest at all times.

Careful attention was also paid to the athletes' diet. The team identified each athlete's food preferences and allergies in advance, eliminating any ingredients or dishes they wished to avoid. A local Korean restaurant in Japan and a chef dispatched from South Korea collaborated to provide customized meals designed to aid recovery and be easy to digest.

For Tuesday's lunch with the EMC athletes, the chef from South Korea prepared a special dish tailored to the athletes' palates: an eel rice bowl, a local specialty of the Nagoya region.

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung (far left) speaks with South Korea's national archery team athletes at the competition venue. [Hyundai Motor Group]

Support for the team's training back in South Korea was equally thorough. As part of the national archery team's signature set-training method — which replicates actual competition venues — the team meticulously analyzed the layout, wind direction and other characteristics of the multipurpose plaza at Okazaki Central General Park, then recreated the Okazaki venue in full at the Jincheon National Training Center.

The replica included not only the targets and launch platforms bearing the official competition logo, but also the athlete entrance, mixed zone and athlete waiting areas. Every procedural element was reproduced as well: English and Japanese in-venue announcer introductions, audience applause and cheers, background music, and broadcast cameras.

The team also held overseas training camps twice in South Korea and once in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, where the competition takes place. The Japan camp focused in particular on carefully examining the climatic conditions expected in September, including temperature and wind speed.

On Sept. 5, a special "noise and crowd adaptation training" session was held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, with baseball spectators watching from the stands.

Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor has continued its global brand activities centered on the World Archery Championships and the Archery World Cup since first signing a global partnership agreement with World Archery in 2016. Late last year, the company extended the agreement, continuing as title sponsor through 2028.

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