북한 생활탁구의 변천사 = The Historical of public table tennis in North Korea

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study examined the evolution of public table tennis in North Korea through in interviews with North Korean defectors and a literature review. From the 1945 until the 1960s, table tennis was considered of socialist mass sport. Public table tennis developed into a representative socialist mass sport in the 1970s. Kim Il-sung directed the promotion of public table tennis as a means of developing elite table tennis. However, In the 1990s, public table tennis in North Korea, like other socialist mass sports, fell into a slump for a while. It wasn’t until 2000 that public table tennis regained its popularity in North Korean society. During this period, paid table tennis centers emerged, and a leisure sports culture developed among some North Koreans. Currently, North Korea’s mass sports culture externally adheres to a collectivist socialist sports culture, but internally, a leisure culture is being formed.