"I wanted to meet friends who play rugby." Young talents gathered! A 'real rugby' festival born from the generous support of OK Financial Group, which covered all costs [Incheon Field Report]

*This content was translated by AI.

Domestic and international rugby hopefuls who wanted to learn and improve their skills gathered under the generous support of OK Financial Group.

The OK Outman Rugby Team (OK Rugby Team) launched the '3rd OK Outman Rugby Academy <Ready to Meet Real Rugby?>' (hereinafter referred to as the Rugby Academy), a two-night, three-day program held on the 15th at Hanall Global Campus in Cheongna-dong, Seo-gu, Incheon Metropolitan City.

The OK Outman Rugby Academy is a talent development program designed for student athletes who will lead the future of Korean rugby to enhance their skills through systematic education while naturally internalizing the values of perseverance, cooperation, and sacrifice, as well as the 'No-Side spirit' of respecting opponents after the game ends. The academy's main purpose is to convey not only techniques and tactics but also the authenticity and roots of Korean rugby, along with the No-Side spirit.

With a total of about 150 student athletes from 11 domestic middle schools and sports clubs, as well as Dubai Tigers from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the academy welcomed participants with an even richer program than last year.

During the two-night, three-day event, student athletes received training on skills such as passing, kicking, tackling, and contact, as well as education on rugby rules, injury prevention, and nutrition. They also had opportunities to talk with current OK Outman Rugby Team players and played actual matches on the final day.

Participation fees were completely free. OK Financial Group made a generous decision to support the expansion of rugby's base in Korea and the growth of student athletes. In addition, two companies, Hummel Korea and Dong-A Otsuka, contributed by providing goods worth 10 million won.

Kwon Chul-geun, head of the OK Financial Group Sports Team, welcomed participants at the opening ceremony, saying, "Last year around this time, I worried whether the Rugby Academy would be helpful to the students. Fortunately, thanks to the many feedbacks from the coaches who came with us, we were able to make this year's programs more detailed. We are also grateful this year to the players and coaches who traveled from far away."

This year, general students Gyeong Heom-i (EVP) also participated in the academy to learn about rugby. On the first day, a program was conducted where participants learned basic skills and rugby rules, followed by recreational activities using rugby balls to become more familiar with the sport itself.

In the morning, at the gymnasium, there was an easy-to-understand session explaining the origins of rugby and its most basic rules to middle school students in grades 1 and 2. The reasons why student athletes encountered rugby varied across Korea. Some students became interested through popular rugby variety programs broadcast on OTT platforms, while others participated out of curiosity by following people around them.

The rugby rule education was led by Seo In-soo, currently serving as a permanent referee for the Rugby Federation of Korea, and Seo Bo-hee, a coach who is also a former member of the women's national rugby team and a permanent referee.

Using videos to introduce the origins and rules of rugby, they sparked engagement through quizzes. Students' eyes sparkled when learning that rugby began when someone accidentally picked up the ball and started running during a soccer match, and that its rules were established early, making it a sport born before soccer.

Park Jong-jin (13, Baejae Middle School), who has been playing rugby for less than a month, expressed satisfaction, saying, "I wanted to know the overall rugby rules. It was my first time here, and they taught the rules really well, even down to the details, so it was fun. Since the class was interactive, it wasn't boring at all, which was great."

At the same time, basic skills training necessary for rugby was underway on the sports field. Players from the OK Outman Rugby Team and rugby coaches and managers gathered from across the country engaged in continuous communication with the student athletes without hesitation.

Kang Dong-woo (14, Baejae Middle School) is a case of a promising player who grew to be one of the top talents nationwide within a year after participating in this academy last year. Kang Dong-woo said, "Last year, I also learned the rules here, which made rugby much more fun. This year, I focused on learning kicking, and it was fun because I got to know myself better and learned many detailed techniques like impact."

The key theme of this year's OK Outman Rugby Academy was 'Real Rugby.' The organizers wanted student athletes to become one through the sport of rugby. Head Coach Kwon Chul-geun stated, "We chose the theme of this academy as 'Real Rugby.' We named it with the hope that students would realize what real rugby is while spending time together, whether in skills or rules." He added, "Even if it's not about rugby, I hope this gathering today becomes a starting point for the students' social lives. I want them to learn how to behave when mixing with various people through the rules."

The students' reactions were also enthusiastic. Park Jong-jin said, "It's easy to meet friends who play baseball, soccer, or basketball at school, but there aren't many friends who play rugby, so I was curious. Just meeting everyone in one place is new for me." He smiled and added, "I'm most looking forward to the rugby festival held on the last day. We will play actual rugby matches using what we learned over the two days, and I want to show off my skills as much as possible there."

Kang Dong-woo, who participated for the second time, also said, "Playing rugby together makes it easy to find conversation topics. Last year, we explored each other's team strengths and analyzed them, so we became very close." He laughed and added, "(Park) Jong-jin should get to know friends from other teams and seniors well. Since the senior players are teaching us really well, I hope he asks many questions and makes as much of it his own as possible."

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*This content was translated by AI.