FISU delegation checks out Cheongcheong's sports facilities

The International University Sports Federation (FISU) delegation visits the Yi Sun-shin Gymnasium in Asan, South Chungcheong on Sunday. [YONHAP]

A delegation from the International University Sports Federation (FISU) completed a four-day tour of athletic competition venues in the Chungcheong region on Monday.

The FISU delegation, which included Acting President Leonz Eder, arrived in Korea on Friday and inspected prospective competition venues, such as the Asan Yi Sun-shin Gymnasium, the Daejeon World Cup Stadium and Cheongju University’s Seokwoo Cultural Gymnasium as part of their evaluation of the region’s bid to host the 2027 Summer World University Games, formerly known as the Summer Universiade.

The delegation is scheduled to meet with sports figures in Seoul on Tuesday and depart on Wednesday.

The Summer World University Games are held every two years and involve 15,000 university students from 150 countries.

The Chungcheong region’s bid to host the 2027 games is supported by four local governments in the central region of Korea: Daejeon, Sejong and North and South Chungcheong provinces.

The region is competing with a bid submitted by the American state of North Carolina.

The FISU acting president offered high praise for the region, but expressed concerns about venue logistics.

"I was impressed by the Chungcheong region's vision to host the competition while combining education, culture, and information technology, as well as preserving the environment and leading in sustainable development," Eder said, adding that he perceived “full support from the [central] government and four local governments during the evaluation period."

“The weakness and challenges of the bid is that we cannot determine what games will be played at which stadium at this point," he said, adding that based on previous experience with earlier Universiads hosted by Daegu and Gwangju, “building an athletes' village and additional stadiums can be solved within a given time frame.”

If the Chungcheong region’s bid is successful, it would mark the third time that Korea has hosted the Summer World University Games. The multisport event was staged in Daegu in 2003 and Gwangju in 2015.

Sixty-six universities in the Chungcheong region have promised to cooperate with the region’s bid and have signed agreements with the organizing committee.

In order to minimize the expected cost of hosting the 2027 games, local governments and the committee plan to refrain from building new stadiums and reorganize existing stadiums.

The cost of hosting the competition is currently estimated at around 600 billion won ($444 million).

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]