The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister Yu In Chon, MCST), in collaboration with the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation (CEO Ha Hyung Joo, KSPO), has launched the Donation Relay by South Korean Sports Stars to attract public interest in the opening of the National Sports Museum, the nation’s first national museum dedicated to sports. Second Vice Minister Jang Mi Ran, the first female Olympic gold medalist in weightlifting, offered items from her career as the first donor on May 23 (Friday).

To support the public to engage more deeply with the history and spirit of sports and to relive moments of passion and inspiration in sports, MCST is currently constructing the National Sports Museum inside Olympic Park (Songpa-gu, Seoul), with the opening scheduled for H2 2026. The Donation Relay campaign is designed to raise public awareness of the purpose of the construction of the National Sports Museum by collecting valuable memorabilia from Korean sports legends.

Second Vice Minister Jang Mi Ran Donates 88 Items from Her Career, including the First Gold Medal for Korea in Female Weightlifting and Training Gear

Second Vice Minister Jang Mi Ran is donating a total of 88 items from her athletic career. Key donations include all of her Olympic medals, including her first-ever medal, a silver from the 2004 Athens Olympic Games; a gold medal from the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the historic first gold for Korean women in weightlifting; and a bronze from the 2012 London Olympics. The collection also includes medals from the Asian Games, competition uniforms, weightlifting belts, and shoes, all imbued with years of passion and dedication. Reflecting on her athletic career, Second Vice Minister Jang named the 2008 Beijing Olympics as one of the most unforgettable competitions of her career. Backed by her strong focus on records over rankings, she trained relentlessly in pursuit of her dream of setting a new world record for the Beijing Olympics, which she eventually achieved together with her gold medal win. She also shared a personal anecdote about her competition shoes, which had been worn down over and over from her intense training. Often joked about by her teammates and coaches as belonging to a museum, Second Vice Minister Jang’s shoes have now been added to the official collection of the museum, thanks to her donation.

The Donation Relay campaign will continue up until the opening of the National Sports Museum, with expectations for continued participation by Korean sports legends, including Olympic medalists. MCST plans to actively utilize the donated articles as sports cultural content to further engage the public.

Boosting Promotion of the National Sports Museum through Video Content, in which  Second Vice Minister Jang Introduces the Donation Relay Campaign

In line with the Donation Relay, MCST and KSPO will further increase their efforts to promote the museum. On May 23, the official MCST YouTube channel featured an episode called “A Walk Around the Neighborhood with Jang Mi Ran” in which the Second Vice Minister introduces the museum. The episode provides updates on the museum’s construction, anecdotes about Second Vice Minister Jang’s donations, and highlights of local attractions like a fitness challenge and art exhibitions near the museum site. Short-form videos from the donation campaign are also available on the museum’s own YouTube channel, while the Korean government’s official YouTube channel releases a video highlighting the value of sports and its ability to transcend time, connecting the past and the future. 

“It is a great honor to take part in the Donation Relay as the first donor,” said Second Vice Minister Jang. “While my collections are personally very meaningful, I believe it is more important to share them with the public and pass on their value to future generations. I hope the donation relay goes a long way in  promoting the opening of the National Sports Museum and look forward to broad participation and interest by the public so that the museum can become a central space for conveying the history and inspiration of Korean sports.”