개화기 서양인의 테니스 향유

Abstract

Modern culture in Korea unfolded in the manner of accepting Western civilization on the basis of traditional culture. In some cases, Western civilization was brought in immediately from the West, while in other cases, it was brought in by way of Japan in an altered form. As for modern sports which originated from the West, in many cases they were directly adopted mainly through protestant missionaries and mission schools. This was the case for ball games, such as soccer, baseball, basketball, etc., which are team competitions in nature. However, in the case of tennis, the direct route from the West and the altered route via Japan co-existed. Thus, the sport of tennis which was introduced in Korea consisted of two lines; lawn tennis, which was relished by Westerners who came to Korea, and soft tennis, which was the style of tennis altered by Japan. First, the Western-style lawn tennis was introduced by Lucius H. Foote, the first Consul General of the US to Korea. There is no foundation for the common view taken by academic circles of Korea's sports history that tennis was introduced by Kim Ok-gyun, a proponent of the enlightenment movement. The first tennis court was built in the yard of a Hanok building which Foote renovated into the American Legation. Afterward, tennis courts were created in various locations in Jeong-dong, Seoul, where Westerners settled. The Seoul Union Club, which was established in 1888, created three tennis courts in the park in front of the American Legation, encouraging members to enjoy the sport. Second, it is likely that tennis courts would have been built in open port Chemulpo, where Westerners resided from early on, but there is not much available information. The Chemulpo Club, which was organized by the Westerners in 1901, created a tennis court and sparked a tennis boom. From 1902, the Westerners in Seoul and Chemulpo formed teams and held tennis competitions. Tennis, a sport that promoted amity and friendly ties, developed into a competitive contest between cities where Westerners lived. Third, the Japanese style soft tennis was born by creating soft rubber balls in order to lessen the burden of importing tennis balls which were consumable goods. Japanese people who came to Korea as Residency-General officials introduced soft tennis in Korea around 1908 and popularized it in the 1910s as a field sport, along with baseball. In Korea, lawn tennis of the West was demonstrated first, and then, soft tennis was diffused during the Japanese colonization, and thus the two versions co-existed. It can be said that this is the pre-history of Korea's tennis history in that the principal agents were foreigners, but in terms of placement, it can be evaluated as the origin of tennis in Korea. Be it lawn tennis or soft tennis, Korea's tennis history led by Koreans as the principal agents unfolded in earnest after Korea gained independence from Japan.