KBO Baseball Stadium 2.0 Era: Lotte's Sajik Baseball Stadium announces reconstruction schedule

[Anchor]

The home of professional baseball's Lotte, Sajik Baseball Stadium, has announced its reconstruction schedule, and it is expected that most KBO teams will soon be using stadiums built in the 21st century.

This truly marks the era of Baseball Stadium 2.0.

The new stadiums are characterized by their aim to be complex cultural sports facilities that go beyond simple baseball viewing.

Reporter Moon Young-kyu has the story.

[Report]

Daejeon Baseball Stadium concluded its 39-year journey with the Eagles in September, accompanied by a spectacular fireworks display.

Hanwha, which will hold a surprise event next week to transform the existing baseball stadium into an ice rink, will move to its new stadium, Baseball Dream Park, starting next year.

The new stadium, built alongside performance and exhibition facilities, will be the first in the country to feature an asymmetrical shape with different left and right grounds, and even includes a swimming pool in the outfield.

[Kim Yong-dong/Hanwha PR Team Leader: "The new Hanwha Eagles baseball stadium is currently 85% complete, and we are in the final stages of construction to hold exhibition games and the home opening game in March next year."]

Following this, SSG's Cheongna Dome Stadium is set to open in 2028, built alongside a large shopping mall that reflects the characteristics of its parent company.

The new Lotte Sajik Stadium, scheduled to open in 2031, will also be developed as a complex sports cultural facility, aiming to attract citizens even on days without baseball games.

[Park Heong-joon/Busan Mayor: "I promise to return the Busan Comprehensive Sports Complex to the citizens as a new concept of a sustainable sports culture complex."]

The Jamsil Baseball Stadium, home to LG Twins and Doosan Bears, will transform into a dome stadium, with construction starting to aim for completion in 2032, forming part of a so-called sports MICE complex along with a hotel and convention center.

Once the Jamsil Dome Stadium is completed, a new era will begin where there will be no main home stadiums built in the 20th century among the 9 KBO teams, except for KT's Suwon Baseball Stadium.

In the cases of Sajik and Jamsil, new stadiums will be built on the sites of the existing baseball stadiums, with Lotte using the Asiad Main Stadium from 2028 to 2030, and LG and Doosan using the Olympic Main Stadium as a substitute from 2027 to 2031.

This is KBS News, Moon Young-kyu.