Sun Xingmin represented the South Korean men's football team in the Jakarta Asian Games in 2018 and won the gold medal, thus obtaining special qualifications for military service. In July last year, he declared to join the art and sports elite team. Starting on the 20th of this month, Sun Xingmin will join the 9th Brigade of the Jeju Marine Corps to receive basic military training.
South Korea's "Military Service Law" stipulates that men aged 18 to 35 should perform their military service obligations. South Korea's current compulsory military service uniform began in the Korean War, and the service period of the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps is 21-24 months (shortened to 18-22 months by 2022). The military service system has brought a lot of impact on the study and employment of young Koreans. For professional players, they have to abandon the ball and join the army in the golden period of their careers.
After 1970, the "Military Service Law" gradually added measures such as special treatment for military service, and rewarded those who have made contributions to the country in the fields of sports and art. The champion and runner-up of the international art competition and the champion of the Korean domestic art competition only need to receive basic military training and carry out corresponding voluntary activities. Sun Xingmin's exemption from military service is based on this regulation.
Sun Xingmin declared to join the elite team of art and sports in July last year. After being enrolled, he must complete basic military training within 34 months and complete 544 hours of voluntary activities to complete his military service obligations.
Sun Xingmin attends classes at a Korean school in London
Most of the players who have obtained special exceptions for military service choose to enter the army and it takes four weeks, while Sun Xingmin applies for the Marine Corps for three weeks. The Marine Corps is more difficult and requires physical fitness The requirements are also stricter, so there are also aliases of "Invincible Marine Corps" and "Ghost Catching Marine Corps". Stars such as Hyun Bin also won praise from everyone when they voluntarily enlisted in the Marine Corps, but entertainers without special treatment need to serve for two years.
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Then after entering the Marine Corps, what training programs does Sun Xingmin need to do?
The soldier's standard set of inch hair is naturally unavoidable. The person in charge of the Marine Corps revealed: "Sun Xingmin will also shave his hair very short like all other recruits who enlist in the army." A camouflage combat uniform and a yellow breastplate. After completing the training, they are eligible to wear the red breastplate that symbolizes blood and passion. After
completed the ceremony, what awaited Sun Xingmin was marching, grenade throwing, standard training, bayonet training, fighting training, tear gas and other training items.
Ordinary training soldiers need to carry 24 kg of armed forces and march 6-7 kilometers. This should not be a problem for Sun Xingmin. Usually, his running distance in each Premier League game is about 8-10 kilometers.
As for grenade throwing training, it is also not a problem for Sun Xingmin, who maintains his arm muscle exercises every day. However, Sun Xingmin underwent right arm surgery in February, and many fans are worried about his injury. According to media reports, medical experts predict that he can complete recovery in mid-April. In addition, Sun Xingmin has added rope skipping and other arm strength exercises to his home training. , It is expected that he will be able to successfully complete his recovery by then. The
standard training is "stand at attention", "turn left", "turn right" and other basic exercises emphasizing discipline, which is very familiar to Sun Xingmin, who practices small steps every day. For
bayonet training, you need to hold a K2 rifle to fight. The end of the K2 rifle is equipped with a 30 cm long bayonet. The trainers need to move rhythmically according to the password like taekwondo exercises, and keep pace and muzzle angle with other trainees totally agree. The content of the training includes offensive and defensive skills, which Sun Xingmin has not been exposed to daily.
crawled through obstacles training, considering that he just recovered from injury, this project also has a burden on Sun Xingmin.
Tear gas room escape, this project caused many players pain, Ahn Jung-hwan who received basic military training in the Gyeonggi-do Army in 2003 also bluntly said that this is the most painful project. The trainees need to take off their gas masks after entering the tear gas chamber, and what awaits them is a painful experience of the devil.
Sun Xingmin took advantage of the suspension of the league to complete his military service obligations, so among the Korean players in Europe, who are they?The opportunity to become the next Sun Xingmin has also attracted the attention of the Spanish media. "Marca" pointed out that Li Gangren and will face the same problems as the big brothers in the future. If he "hands over to the country" in the golden period of his career, it will be difficult for the South Korean David Silva. It is undoubtedly a pity for the star of hope.
After Lee Gang-in skipped a level and led South Korea U20 to the final of the World Youth Championship in 2019, South Korean fans petitioned to allow Lee Gang-in and other heroes to enjoy special military service. However, at the end of last year, the South Korean government decided to maintain the current system and did not recognize them as eligible for alternative service.
Another team that has a high voice for granting special qualifications for military service is BTS. However, the alternative service system in the field of Korean art and sports has been criticized as unfair. The Ministry of National Defense and the Military Manpower Administration even considered abolishing the system completely, and finally decided to maintain the current one system. Former South Korean international Park Ju-young tried to take advantage of the permanent residence of the Principality of Monaco after his transfer to Monaco, which caused anger in South Korea. Zhang Xianxiu received a special case for the Incheon Asian Games gold medal, but he falsified his volunteer service certificate and was permanently removed from the national team.
However, compared with football, the exemption from military service in Korean basketball and baseball is more controversial. The head coach of the South Korean men's basketball team at the Jakarta Asian Games Xu Zai called his two sons into the national team and was complained about. In the end, the Korean men's basketball team only won a bronze medal but was not exempted from military service. Xu Zai also resigned and left the national team.
Similarly, the Korean baseball team has won the Asian Games for three consecutive games, but there are many critics. For example, in the Incheon Asian Games, as many as 13 of the 24 players in South Korea have not served in the military. The Korean media questioned the Asian Games. It will become a convenient channel for players to fight for exemption from military service.
Relatively speaking, in the field of football, players represented by Sun Xingmin, Park Ji-sung, and won the applause of the fans after winning honors for the country and enjoying the special exception of military service. After being exempted from military service, many of them have Deserving of this "privilege" performance.
There are many debates in South Korea about alternatives to the military service system in the field of arts and sports. For this reason, although the South Korean government has decided to basically maintain the current level, it also emphasizes that in the process of selecting sports country representatives, relevant information will be disclosed to improve fairness.
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