"You're on my local team" Uijeongbu Gymnasium, where grandparents and children also go hand in hand, KB Insurance was special just for its existence

*This content was translated by AI.

"You're a local team."

Uijeongbu KB Insurance Stars is known as our team to Uijeongbu City and other citizens in northern Gyeonggi Province.

KB Insurance settled in Uijeongbu City, Gyeonggi-do from the 2017-2018 season. It is considered a club that has successfully established itself in the northern part of Gyeonggi-do, which is like a barren place for professional sports. Choi Won-seok (48) and Lee Jin-ah (45), who met at a recent KB Insurance fan meeting held at KB Insurance's Insanium in Suwon, are said to be enthusiastic fans of KB Insurance who attend almost all away games. Choi Won-seok said, "It's been four years since I cheered for KB. I went to the stadium with my children and the whole family fell in love with volleyball. Also, KB is a team representing Uijeongbu City, where I live, so I'm rooting for it," he said.

This sense of belonging is not unique to Uijeongbu citizens. KB Insurance played a central role in uniting local residents near Uijeongbu City, as all 80 members of the membership who attended the fan meeting were fans living in northern Gyeonggi Province.

Sisters Yoon Na-ra (14) and Yoon Na-ye (11) constantly visit Uijeongbu City in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, following their father, who is a volleyball fan. Yoon Na-ra said, "I originally liked women's volleyball first, but KB was close to home, so I went there often. "I only went 10 times this year," he said with a big smile. "It was more fun because the players flew the ball hard and the rally continued quickly."

Yoon Naye also said, "It was nice to be close to home. "It was amazing that the players received the ball well when the ball was fast," he said. "I like Lim Sung-jin the most." I hope you have a safe trip to the military," he said with a shy smile.

There is also a special scenery that can only be seen in KB Insurance's home game. Unlike other volleyball courts where young fans gather, at Uijeongbu Gymnasium, you can often see grandfathers and grandmothers walking to the volleyball court in partnership with their young grandchildren. Grandparents are led by grandchildren wearing yellow uniforms and face painting. After parking, parents follow in their footsteps. Players also feel the specialness of their home stadiums.

Libero Kim Do-hoon (28), who has been active in KB Insurance for six years, said, "KB Insurance fans are very friendly and have many family units. Older people often cheer like sons. So sometimes I liked it because I was friendly like a family, not a player-to-fan."

Fans who visit the gym as if they were drinking in the neighborhood are armed with the same passion as the players in the stadium. Choi Won-seok said, "From the standpoint of having been to a lot of away trips, I think KB certainly has a different cheering culture from other teams. He explained, "It not only gives the joy of watching volleyball, but also gives the family and children the fun of being together, while singing along to different cheering songs for each player."

"The Kyungmin University Gymnasium (which is a temporary home stadium) also had the advantage of being able to see the player closer. But it's better to do it in a bigger official stadium. Also, as I said earlier, KB has its own cheering culture. I think the cheer seats that fans can stand up and cheer for are unique to KB. If we remodel Uijeongbu Gymnasium, I hope we will secure many such seats," he said.

Clubs and players' efforts to approach fans first were also the reason why they fell into KB Insurance. Despite the busy schedule preparing for the postseason, this fan meeting was also held for nearly a month by all employees under general manager Hwang In-seok, and received a hot response. A female volleyball fan in her 20s who sees both men's and women's volleyball said, "KB seems to be the only volleyball team that consistently posts entries on social media every game. In addition, KB players have no players to avoid on their way to and from work. Lim Sung-jin, who is the most popular, recalled, "When fans call me, I say hello and sign my autograph, and I go at the end."

In that sense, it remains regrettable that he cannot use his home stadium, Uijeongbu Gymnasium, for a while. Uijeongbu Gymnasium was closed in November 2024 after receiving the lowest grade after the ceiling fell and damage was found in some facilities. As a result, KB Insurance had to urgently find a new home stadium during the 2024-2025 season, which is currently ongoing two years later.

As soon as possible, the home game was run from 2025 to 2026 at the gym of Kyungmin University located in Uijeongbu City. However, since it is not a specialized volleyball facility and there is also a college schedule at Kyungmin University, chances are high that it will be played at another stadium from next season. An official from KB Insurance said, "We are looking into gyms in the city of Uijeongbu as our top priority. However, if it is inevitable, we are also putting other local gyms in the candidate group," he said.

When will we be able to see the friendly scenery of Uijeongbu Gymnasium again. Unfortunately, as Uijeongbu City recently considered the full renovation and repair of Uijeongbu Gymnasium, the return to the home stadium is becoming far off. An official from Uijeongbu City said in response to the inquiry, "The Uijeongbu Gymnasium has received a suspension grade and is considering the design. At first, it was difficult to repair the roof of the gym, so I considered changing the roof. However, during the investigation, there was a part that needed reinforcement in the pillar or the basic part," he explained.

"We are currently trying to figure out how far the scope of remuneration is. The direction of remodeling has not yet been determined whether it will be new or reinforced. Depending on how the direction is set, the construction schedule is likely to come out in detail," he said.

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*This content was translated by AI.