The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Aug. 8 said a K-pop concert to be the highlight of the 25th World Scout Jamboree in Korea was relocated to Seoul World Cup Stadium in the Sangam-dong neighborhood of Seoul's Mapo-gu District. Shown is installation of the stage at the stadium for the concert. (Yonhap News)
By Park Hye Ri
A two-hour K-pop concert to serve as the highlight of the finale of the 25th World Scout Jamboree in Korea will be held on Aug. 11 at 7 p.m. at Seoul World Cup Stadium in the Sangam-dong neighborhood of Seoul's Mapo-gu District.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Aug. 8 said it made "the inevitable decision" to change the concert venue again from Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do Province, to Seoul as Typhoon Khanun was forecast to pass directly through the Korean Peninsula.
"As Jamboree participants left Saemangeum and are mainly staying in the Seoul metropolitan area, we made this decision after carefully reviewing many factors such as travel time and convenience from accommodations to the venue, the stadium's vast experience in hosting all sorts of events and safety management know-how, more pleasant viewing environment and seating capacity (around 66,000 people)," it added.
The Jamboree's closing ceremony will also be held at the stadium before the concert, whose artist lineup and content will be announced later.
"It's regrettable and unfortunate to inevitably have to change our plan to nicely conclude the Saemangeum Jamboree with a K-pop concert at Jeonju World Cup Stadium because of changes in the typhoon's path," Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo Gyoon said. "Still, the Saemangeum Jamboree will continue strongly through the K-pop concert in Sangam-dong."
"The concert on Aug. 11 will emotionally decorate the Jamboree's finale as about 40,000 scouts experience the appeal and essence of K-Culture and become one."
With the year's sixth typhoon Khanun advancing north, the government that morning conducted an emergency evacuation of scouts who participated in the Jamboree from the event's original site at Saemangeum, an estuarine tidal flat in Buan-gun County, Jeollanam-do Province.
hrhr@korea.kr
