Korea to Host World Wrestling Bout

The New Korea Pro-Wrestling Association (NKPWA) and Kenneth Entertainment are co-sponsoring “Impact 2006, the World Pro-Wrestling Championship” at the Gwangmyeong City domed bicycle racetrack at 5:00 pm on February 10. World-famous pro-wrestling stars from South Korea, the U.S., Mexico, Japan, and China will compete in the event.

Impact 2006 will be broadcast live on MBC. It has been 21 years since the last live airing of a professional wrestling match in South Korea.

The NKPWA is aiming to bring back the glory days of this once very popular sport. World-famous wrestlers, including Americans A.J. Styles, Christopher Daniels, and Lance Hoyt will participate in the event.

Yeokbalsan, Yun Gang-cheol, Shin Gi, and Lee Su-yeon, representing Korea, will also participate. Yeokbalsan, who some say is Korea’s best pro wrestler, will fight Lance Hoyt, who stands two meters tall and weighs 136kg, for the heavyweight championship. Yun Gang-cheol, a wrestler originally trained in hapkido, will try his hand at the junior heavyweight championship and fight Styles and Daniels in the same ring in a triple-threat match.

The event will also feature Gale Kim, an American pro wrestler of Korean descent and a former model. Gale Kim will team up with Mexico’s Joseline in a rumble with a Japanese-Mexican duo.

Jae-Yun Jung jaeyuna@donga.com