About 3,000 Run in 'Tongkeun Run' ... 60 Million Won in Entry Fees to Support Heating and Child Rehabilitation

[Financial News] Participants wearing rain jackets and race bibs gathered at Seoul's World Cup Park. The 60 million won raised from general participants' entry fees at the Tongkeun Run will go toward winter heating and support for children's rehabilitation treatment.
According to Hope Friend Korea Food for the Hungry International on the 15th, the event was held at Peace Plaza in World Cup Park in Sangam, Mapo District, Seoul, on the 14th. Korea Food for the Hungry International and Lotte Mart and Lotte Super co-hosted the event, with support from the Seoul Metropolitan Government. About 3,000 people, including general participants and employees and family members of the organizing institutions, took part. Ahead of this year's first event, the organizers began accepting general participants on a first-come, first-served basis on September 14.
The donation consists of the full entry fees paid by 2,000 general participants, at 30,000 won each. Korea Food for the Hungry International will use part of the funds to provide cold-weather and heating supplies to energy-vulnerable households and welfare facilities. The remainder will go to the Children's Rehabilitation Center at Bobath Memorial Hospital in Hanam City, Gyeonggi Province, to help treat young patients.
The center, operated by Lotte Medical Foundation, treats children who need rehabilitation for developmental delays, brain lesions and other conditions. In the sensory integration therapy room, children practice responding to stimuli around them and regulating their senses.
The courses were a 3-kilometer family run, a 5-kilometer race and a 10-kilometer race. Children younger than 14 could take part in the family run with an adult guardian. The other two courses were open to people aged 14 and older.
Starting groups for the 10-kilometer race were assigned based on finish times submitted in advance, while groups for the 5-kilometer race were assigned based on the order in which participants completed registration. Participants in the 10-kilometer race who had not submitted a time were placed in later starting groups. A chip attached to each race bib measured the time from the start line to the finish line. Official results can be viewed on the event website.
TV personality Park Seul-gi served as emcee, and yoga instructor Yeo Dong-gu led the warm-up. The samba percussion group La Percussion performed.
The organizers provided T-shirts and sports socks to people who registered, and gave finishers medals and products from Lotte Mart's private-label brand, among other items. Booths introducing the social contribution initiatives of Korea Food for the Hungry International and Lotte Mart and Lotte Super were set up at the event. Hands-on programs for the public were also offered.
Cha Woo-Chul, CEO of Lotte Mart and Lotte Super, said, "We will continue our social contribution activities, including the Tongkeun Run, to provide ongoing support to vulnerable groups and young patients." Choi Chang-nam, chairman of Hope Friend Korea Food for the Hungry International, said, "We will responsibly provide support so that the goodwill gathered through this Tongkeun Run can offer practical help to neighbors facing hardship during the winter."
[email protected] Jang In-seo Reporter