The Lotte Giants of professional baseball will hold a 60th anniversary celebration of normalized diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan on the 17th at their home game in collaboration with the Consulate General of Japan in Busan.
Lotte explained on the 16th, "This event serves as a venue for cultural diplomacy mediated through sports, established to promote friendship and forward-looking cooperation between Korea and Japan."
On the day of the game, about 220 people, including Japanese baseball fans residing in Busan, citizens engaged in Korea-Japan exchange organizations, and officials from the Consulate General of Japan in Busan, will wear the 'Camellia uniform' and attend in a group.
Before the game, a welcome ceremony will be held where Consul General Oscar Tsuyoshi, singer Azuma Aki, and a Japanese student who loves Korean baseball will present bouquets to the managers of both teams.
Singer Azuma Aki, who is actively working between Japan and Korea, will throw the first pitch. Azuma Aki, from Fukuoka, is a high school enka singer who started her broadcasting activities at a young age and has received much love from domestic fans through various programs such as 'Korea-Japan King of Song Contest' and 'Korea-Japan Top Ten Show.' After the fifth inning, Azuma Aki is scheduled to passionately sing 'Return to Busan Port,' a representative song of Busan that has been beloved in both countries.
Meanwhile, Lotte noted, "Based on this cultural exchange event, we are actively pursuing sports cultural exchange between Korea and Japan," and added, "From June 28 to 29, our mascot Windy and cheerleaders will participate in the 'KOREAN NIGHT' event of the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan to continue the exchange. In the future, the team plans to expand cooperation with the Chiba Lotte Marines in areas such as player delegation and marketing to continuously create positive synergy between the two teams."
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