The 17th Korea Prime Minister’s Cup (KPMC)International Baduk Championship was held. The KPMC, a worldwide festival of Baduk players, was held with an opening ceremony at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Gwangju on the 25th.

The KPMC, which had been held as online tournaments for the past two years due to COVID-19, returned to a face-to-face tournament this year.

Representative players from 54 countries applied for the championship.

?“Baduk has become a great leisure activity and the best mind sport for developing emotional stability and patience,” said Hyo-seok Seo, the president of the Korea Baduk Federation.

Mr. Seo said “Baduk is a popular global sport enjoyed by men and women of all ages across the world, beyond borders, language and cultural differences.”, adding, “I would like to appreciate Ki-jung Kang, the mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City and all other offcials for their efforts to host it successfully.”

Ki-jung Kang, the mayor of Gwangju, said “We sincerely hope the 17th KPMC in Gwangju will be a meaningful championship to communicate with each other with their perforamnce and looki forward to great matches for everyone who have participated.”

After the opening ceremony, the 17th KPMC was held from 26th to 28th with a three-day heated matches. After the closing ceremony, there were various tourism programs and shopping events prepared for the participants.

The KPMC was established in 2006 with the full support of the government to promote Baduk to the international community and strengthen its position as the strongest Baduk country. Currently, it is the world’s largest Baduk competition.

?The Asian Go Federation officials took a commemorative photo after the meeting.