Park Ju-hee, a professor at Kookmin University’s Graduate School of Asian Olympic Studies (pictured), made this statement at the recent International Academic Conference of the Korean Tourism Association held in Seoul, noting, “Even a single-sport event involves dozens of meetings—such as general assemblies, seminars, and workshops—that take place before and after the competition.” She added, “By combining sports and MICE, we can expand the role of sports events beyond one-time occasions to serve as platforms that generate ongoing business opportunities and value.” She explained that, on the surface, the 17-day PyeongChang Winter Olympics also functioned as a platform that supplied demand for various events—from bidding and preparation to hosting and post-event activities—when viewed from a MICE perspective.
During a special session hosted by the Korea MICE Association that day, Professor Park proposed revitalizing sports MICE as a strategy for regional synergy and expanding the MICE market. As the director of the Asian Olympic Graduate School—the first domestic university program to receive accreditation from the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA)—he is also a sports policy expert currently serving as a member of the Scientific Committee of the International Olympic Academy (IOA) and as chairman of the International Sports Strategy Committee (ISF).
Professor Park views sports and MICE as having a mutually complementary relationship. He believes that while sports bring people together through moments of inspiration and exhilaration, MICE plays a role in connecting these people to provide ongoing opportunities and new value. He emphasized, “Sports is a field with significant room for growth in terms of business events, such as international conferences, industrial exhibitions, and trade fairs.”
To revitalize “Sports MICE,” Professor Park advised focusing on sport-specific networks and ecosystems at the national and city levels rather than merely on the event level, such as attracting and hosting competitions. He argued that since Korea has proven its capability to host major sporting events—such as the Summer and Winter Olympics, the FIFA World Cup, and world championships in track and field and swimming—it is now time to broaden its horizons toward governance and business expansion. In particular, he highlighted the example of Singapore, which has recently established itself as a sports hub in Asia.
“Starting with ‘SportTech Asia’ in 2016 and continuing through this year’s ‘Sportel Singapore,’ the city has hosted Sports MICE events across various fields—including sports tech, business, investment, governance, and media—over the past decade,” he said, adding, “This is a prime example of how Sports MICE has helped a city-state overcome the limitations it faces in attracting mega-sports events.”
He also urged greater efforts to attract international conferences—such as annual general assemblies and workshops held by individual sports federations—in addition to major sporting events. He further advised that cities should begin by understanding the mechanisms involved, such as the global sports calendar and networks, before entering the bidding competition. He also proposed bidding to host the “SportsAccord Convention,” which is expected to have a significant ripple effect with the strategic participation of approximately 1,700 officials from some 120 international federations and organizations across various sports disciplines.
Professor Park emphasized, “There are hundreds of international sports federations and organizations, such as the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA),” adding, “In particular, the development of a sports and MICE complex in the Jamsil area of Seoul should serve as an opportunity to establish a Korean-style sports MICE model.”
