The Gwangju 2015 Universiade Organizing Committee (GUOC) was invited to a special event at U.N. headquarters in New York and delivered the message that it is trying to achieve peace through sports.

On April 15, the GUOC was invited to celebrate the International Day of Sports for Development and Peace (IDSDP) at U.N. headquarters. The GUOC also passed along an invitation to the Gwangju Universiade Games themselves to ambassadors to the U.N.

The U.N. General Assembly established the International Day of Sports for Development and Peace in August 2013 with the objective of raising awareness of sports' contribution to and potential for social development and peace, and to seek cooperation from the international community to achieve such goals. This year's was the second such event. The city of Gwangju and the U.N. have worked in close collaboration to embody the value of "Sport for Development" since 2013, and thus the organizing committee was invited to the event.



U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and key figures from the international sports community, including International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach and International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Philip Craven, took part in the event. U.N. Secretary General Ban, other high-ranking U.N. officials and important sports figures made speeches and the session was broadcast live on the U.N.'s website.



"As the city of Gwangju is known for democracy, peace, and human rights, the 2015 Summer Universiade will flourish in peace with the city's dedication to sports," said GUOC Secretary General Kim Yoon-suk in his speech, asking people to take an interest in and support the event.

Kim then passed the official Universiade torch to U.N. Secretary General Ban and to IOC President Bach.

By Limb Jae-un
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photos courtesy of Gwangju 2015 Universiade Organizing Committee (GUOC)
jun2@korea.kr