Seoul Snow Jam Closed at Gwanghwamun Square, Seoul

SEOUL , South Korea , Dec. 14 /CNW/ -- Seoul Snow Jam, a three- day winter festival held at Gwanghwamun Square, downtown Seoul , closed on December 13 with the FIS Snowboard World Cup Big Air Competition as its grand finale. With the coming "2010-2012 Visit Korea Year", the city of Seoul's hosting of this event was aimed at providing citizens with an opportunity to enjoy winter sports and drawing interest of international tourists to the city. A total of over 260,000 citizens and visitors were estimated to have enjoyed the three-day Seoul Snow Jam, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

An eye-catching snow slope, measuring 100 meters in length and 34 meters in height, was built for the event at the central public square, which served as the main site for the Seoul Snow Jam 2009. While previous Big Air competitions were held usually in city suburbs around the world, this was the first time ever for it to be held at the heart of a busy mega city like Seoul . Seoul is also the first city in Asia to host the FIS snowboard World Cup Big Air.

29 riders from 10 countries competed in the World Cup Big Air. Gian-Luca Cavigelli from Switzerland ranked first, followed by Stefan Gimpl from Austria and Markku Koski from Finland .

According to a survey of 650 citizens conducted by Dongseo Research, an independent research firm, 92% of the respondents felt that the 2009 Seoul Snow Jam has contributed to raising the awareness of the city to the world, and 88% agreed on Seoul hosting another international event, such as Seoul Snow Jam, in downtown of the city to be favorable. Seven out of ten evaluated it "satisfactory," while two "neutral" and only one "dissatisfactory".

"26 foreign tourists will make one new local job. One foreign tourist generates a ripple effect, equivalent to USD 1,830 ," stressed Kang Cheol-won, Director-General of Public Relations Planning of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, on the importance of boosting the tourism industry. " Seoul Snow Jam was a prelude for the 2010-2012 Visit Korea Year. It was a great opportunity for the city to enhance its brand power as well as that of Korea. The city also expects the event will provide Pyeongchang with an added momentum to its efforts to host 2018 Winter Olympic Games," he added.

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