Hockey in South Korea has for the most part been about athletes realizing their Olympic dreams, but just a few hours away from Pyeongchang, it has a totally different meaning.
On the frozen waters of the Imjin River, in Gapyeong County, Canadian Korean War veterans returned to the site of one of their biggest battles to play a little game of hockey.
The game itself marked a recreation of a bit of lost Canadian history. In the middle of a war zone during Korean War and with the enemy鈥檚 gunfire within earshot, a group of Canadian soldiers put down their guns and picked up some hockey sticks for a friendly game of hockey on the Imjin River. The game served as a morale booster for the troops.
Decades later, Korean War veterans got to witness and participate in a recreation of the game.
"Never in my imagination did I ever think that I鈥檇 be here, right now, doing this,鈥� Dennis Moore, a Korean War veteran, told 麻豆传媒. 鈥淚 just can鈥檛 grasp it and I feel very proud.鈥�
In the nearby countryside, Canadians -- fighting under UN command -- were outnumbered and outgunned while trying to control an area known as Hill 677 in what would be dubbed the Battle of Kapyong. The fight helped slow down the Chinese and prevented the capture of Seoul. A monument to Canadians in the Korean War now sits near Hill 677.
In total, 26,000 Canadian soldiers fought in Korea and 516 died.
Kim Man Jong was just 10 years old during the Korean War, but he says if it weren鈥檛 for Canadians protecting the hillside, Korea would look much different than it does today.
鈥淭his whole peninsula would be called North Korea,鈥� he said through a translator. 鈥淲e would be communists鈥� Our freedom is thanks to the Canadians.鈥�
Kim has made a documentary about the battle so people don鈥檛 forget the sacrifice Canadians made on Hill 677.
With a report from 麻豆传媒鈥� Joy Malbon in Gapyeong, South Korea
