# 1986 Asian Games in Seoul (20 September – 5 October 1986)

URL: https://allhistories.com/korea/timeline/1986-1986-asian-games-in-seoul
Location: Seoul, South Korea
Themes: Culture, South Korea

From 20 September to 5 October 1986, Seoul hosted the 10th Asian Games, with thousands of athletes from 27 nations competing in 25 sports. The event was held largely in the newly built Seoul Sports Complex at Jamsil, which would also serve the 1988 Olympics. South Korea finished second in the medal table, winning 93 gold medals, just one fewer than China. North Korea boycotted the games, and a bomb at Gimpo International Airport shortly before the opening killed five people. The government used the games to showcase the country's economic progress and to test the organization and security planned for the Seoul Olympics, awarded to the city in 1981. The games also brought extensive urban redevelopment and the cleanup of the Han River. The Asian Games marked South Korea's arrival as a host of world-class sporting events.

## Why it matters
The 1986 Asian Games served as a successful rehearsal for the 1988 Seoul Olympics and boosted South Korea's international profile.

Ruler at the Time: [Chun Doo-hwan](https://allhistories.com/korea/rulers/chun-doo-hwan)

Prime Minister of South Korea: Lho Shin-yong (Democratic Justice Party)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — 1986 Asian Games](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1986_Asian_Games)
- [Wikipedia — 1988 Summer Olympics](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Summer_Olympics)
- [Wikipedia — South Korea: Republics and Military Rule (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_South_Korea)