Busan is good

A Baseball Player Choi Dong-won as Remembered by His Son… Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum Annex, Descendants of Great Masters

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Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum (hereinafter referred to as the Museum) announced that on October 11 at 2:00 p.m., it will hold a humanities concert under the theme Descendants of Great Masters to reflect on the life of baseball player Choi Dong-won.

This program is designed to invite the second-generation descendants of great masters who achieved distinction in their fields, in order to remember the contributions of the deceased masters and to explore their human side.

The guest of honor in October is Choi Ki-ho, son of the late baseball player Choi Dong-won (1958–2011). On October 11, the Annex will revisit the footsteps of Choi Dong-won, a legendary figure in Korean baseball history who left behind unprecedented and unparalleled records.

Born in Busan in 1958, Choi Dong-won is a legendary figure in Korean baseball who traversed high school, corporate league, and professional baseball. During his years at Gyeongnam High School, he earned national recognition by pitching outstandingly against top teams of the time. In the late 1970s, when Korean baseball first began its full-fledged challenge on the international stage, he rose to fame overseas as the right-handed ace of the national team.

Above all, Choi Dong-won is remembered as the key player who brought unforgettable glory not only to the citizens of Busan but also to the Lotte Giants, Busan’s home team. In 1981, when Lotte was still a corporate league team, he pitched in all six games of the Corporate League Korean Series, recording two wins and one save, and delivered Lotte its last championship in the corporate league. Three years later, in 1984, after the team transitioned to the professional league, he singlehandedly secured four wins in the Korean Series, bringing the Lotte Giants their first-ever professional championship.

Although he stood at the pinnacle of his career, Choi took personal risks to safeguard the rights of younger teammates with low salaries and short careers. Beginning in 1988, he spearheaded the establishment of the Korea Professional Baseball Players Association, leaving an indelible mark on Korean baseball history with his achievements, fighting spirit, and devotion.

On this day, the audience will encounter the lesser-known side of Choi Dong-won—not as a sports hero, but as a father and as a man—through the memories of his son, Choi Ki-ho.

Choi Ki-ho himself played baseball in high school. This will be the first occasion to shed light on the educational philosophy and life principles of his father, which profoundly influenced his own life.

The talk will be moderated by Bae Min-gi, a Busan-born webtoon artist who is currently serializing Musamanrihaeng on NAVER Webtoon and previously authored a 40-episode series on professional baseball, reflecting his deep affection for the sport.

Following the talk, a “small concert” will take place, featuring songs associated with the great master. These include “Busan Seagull” (sung by Moon Seong-jae) and “Naega” (sung by Kim Hak-rae and Lim Cheol-woo), the latter of which Choi Dong-won himself sang live on a television program in 1984. The arrangements will be handled by Kang Hyun-min, a musical director and composer.

Any citizen interested in the event may participate free of charge through advance registration. Applications are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis (limited to 40 people) via the museum website (busan.go.kr/mmch).

Meanwhile, the Museum plans to compile the contents of the Descendants of Great Masters series (2024–2025) into a book, which will be published in December as a non-commercial edition. Copies will be provided on-site to citizens who have attended both the September and October programs.

Kim Ki-yong, Director of Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum, stated, “Through the memories of Choi Dong-won’s son, we hope this will be an opportunity to look back not only on the life of a player who spent his passionate twenties in the fiery 1980s, but also to reflect together on Busan’s past.”