The students of the Dept. of Physical Education have achieved good results in the recent competitions. In particular, their achievements in the 97th National Sports Festival in Asan were remarkable. 35 CBNU students took part in 5 different events and won medals: three gold medals(singles and doubles soft tennis and 71kg class of wrestling), one silver medal(55kg class of wrestling) and three bronze medals(doubles soft tennis, discus and 57kg class of wrestling).
  The medal for the doubles soft tennis team is their third successive gold medal. Kim Tae-min(’15, Dept. of Physical Education), a member of the doubles soft tennis team, also won the singles soft tennis match and became a double gold medalist. He was selected for the national team this year and won a gold medal in the Korean Cup. He said, “I didn’t expect a gold medal in the doubles competition, but it’s really great that the CBNU team has won three consecutive times. It is such a valuable result due to my teammates’ efforts.”
  At the same competition, Yang Han-sol(’13, Dept. of Physical Education) obtained a gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling in the 71kg weight class. He also acquired a gold medal at the KBS National Wrestling Championship last June. He said, “I’m deliriously happy about my successful competition. I am really thankful to my advisors who have led me, and I’m proud of my colleagues who have done their best.”
  The aforementioned achievements are more valuable because students gained them while managing two tasks: studying and exercising. The CBNU Dept. of Physical Education was established in the College of Natural Sciences in 1957, but it moved to the College of Education in 1967. However, in 1998, it returned to the College of Natural Sciences, but in 2012, it went back to the College of Education. Students in the Dept of Physical Education must take 150 credits overall, but it was 140 credits when the department belonged to the College of Natural Sciences. Plus, students have to audit the classes of real teachers in local middle or high schools as well as teach students for about two weeks for practice.
  A coach of the CBNU wrestling team said, “It is inarguable that our students have less time to exercise compared to other schools’ students. The CBNU students train for an hour at 6 a.m. and take regular classes after 9 a.m. Then, they reassemble at 5 p.m. and do afternoon and evening trainings.” In fact, Kim Guk-jin(’13, Dept of Physical Education), who played in the softball team competition at the National Sports Festival, said, “In the case of other schools, students are excused from classes one to two weeks before a competition, but CBNU students are allowed to be absent only on the day of the competition.”
  However, belonging to the College of Education also has some merits. Seniors in high school and their parents highly appreciate that the school gives student athletes special chances to study. Furthermore, since the Dept. of Physical Education supports students systemically to foster secondary-school teachers, it is expected to turn out many excellent teachers as well as athletes. In this regard, Kim In-hye(’14, Dept. of Physical Education), the president of the student council of this department, said, “I’m really pleased with our department for moving back to the College of Education. I think students now can cultivate more professional academic knowledge and athletic abilities, so would-be teachers have many more chances.” She added, “Only 5 years have passed since moving back to the College of Education. A class which helps students to prepare for the teacher certification examination was just adopted this year. We are modifying our systems and curricula and optimizing them for our department. It is mandatory for seniors to pass on better conditions to our juniors.”
  The Dept. of Physical Education not only helps students’ studies but also consistently endeavors to provide a better environment for training. In fact, a new artificial turf tennis court was built in May of this year. This is for students, especially the tennis and soft tennis athletes, to utilize modernized athletic facilities. The court is used as a place for both athletes’ training and school members’ leisure activities.
  Professor Park Jong-jin of the Dept. of Physical Education said, “Our department focuses on the slogan ‘studying athletes.’ Students manage both studying and training and make an effort to be well-equipped leaders and athletes at the same time. They are getting excellent results in many competitions, which brings honor to our school.” Students are making ceaseless efforts with the goal of getting great results at the National Sports Festival in 2017. Furthermore, they are aiming to participate in the bigger matches, such as the Jakarta Asian Games in 2018 and the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. Like the graduated athletes of CBNU who achieved great results in past games such as the Asian Games in 2014, students are expected to be splendid athletes or teachers.

By Lee Sang-yi
sy36@cbnu.ac.kr
By Kim Jae-wan
jw37@cbnu.ac.kr