For the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

, a total of thirty-one sports venues were used. South Korea hosted its first World Championships in 1978 in shooting sports. Three years later, Seoul was awarded the 1988 Summer Olympics. Many of the venues constructed for the 1988 Games were completed two years earlier in time for the Asian Games. The

1986 Asian Games The 1986 Asian Games ( ko, 1986년 아시아 경기대회/1986년 아시안 게임, Cheon gubaek palsip-yuk nyeon Asia gyeonggi daehoe/Cheon gubaek palsip-yuk nyeon Asian Geim), officially known as the 10th Asian Games and the X Asiad ( ko, 제10� ...

served as test events for the 1988 Summer Olympics. The men's marathon course was lined by 36,000 policemen. Steffi Graf won a gold medal in women's singles to complete the "Golden Slam". None of the football venues used for these games were used for the

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea an ...

that Korea co-hosted with Japan.

Venues

Seoul Sports Complex Seoul Sports Complex ( ko, 서울종합운동장), also known as Jamsil Sports Complex ( ko, 잠실종합운동장), is a group of sports facilities in Songpa-gu in Seoul, South Korea. It was built for the 1986 Asian Games and 1988 Summer Olympi ...

Olympic Park An Olympic Park is a sports campus for hosting the Olympic Games. Typically it contains the Olympic Stadium and the International Broadcast Centre. It may also contain the Olympic Village or some of the other sports venues, such as the aquatics ...

New venues

Existing venues

Football venues

Before the Olympics

The oldest venue, Dongdaemun Stadium, was built in 1926.History of Dongdaenum Stadium: 1926-2003.
Retrieved 2 December 2010. The stadium underwent three renovations between 1926 and the 1988 Summer Olympics. Busan Goodek Stadium was built in 1928. Dageu Stadium was constructed in 1948 and renovated in 1975. Daejeon Stadium was completed in 1964. Taenung International Shooting Range was constructed in 1972 following the Summer Olympics that took place in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

. Six years later, the venue made history by becoming the first to host a world championships for shooting sports. This venue was renovated in 1987-8 before the 1988 Games to comply with

International Shooting Sport Federation The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) is the governing body of the Olympic shooting events in rifle, pistol and shotgun ( clay target) disciplines, and of several non-Olympic shooting sport events. ISSF's activities include regulati ...

(ISSF, then Union International de Tir (UIT)) standards. Jangchung Gymnasium hosted the 1979 FIBA World Championship for Women. The success of the UIT World Shooting Championships that year led to the formation of a bid committee to bring the 1988 Games to Seoul. Among Seoul's competitors were

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia (who also bidded for the

1988 Summer Paralympics The 1988 Summer Paralympics () were the first Paralympics in 24 years to take place in the same city as the Olympic Games. They took place in Seoul, South Korea. This was the first time the term "Paralympic" was used officially. Bidding pro ...

in a different process, host of the 1956 Summer Olympics, and

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most po ...

, Japan. Seoul submitted its bid to the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

(IOC) in late 1980 though Melbourne withdrew its bid in early 1981. At the 1981 IOC meeting in

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the Rhine, the border with Fra ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

(

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

since October 1990), the IOC selected Seoul to host the 1988 Summer Olympics. Venues for the Seoul Sports Complex were constructed between 1973 and 1984.1988 Summer Olympics official report.
Volume 1. Part 1. p. 159. Retrieved 2 December 2010. Except for Mongchon Tosong and the Tongillo Road Course, all of the other venues were completed or renovated by the summer of 1986.1988 Summer Olympics official report.
Volume 1. Part 1. 172, 174, 186-206. Retrieved 2 December 2010. The fact that the city was preparing to host the 1986 Asian Games was well regarded, as much of the infrastructure built for the event would be reused and the event was see as the big test.

During the Olympics

The men's marathon course was run in hot weather along a route lined with 36,000

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

personnel. At the Han River Regatta Course/ Canoeing Site during the men's K-1 1000 m canoeing event, it was announced that Australia's

Grant Davies Grant Davies (born 11 September 1963) is an Australian sprint canoeist who competed in the late 1980s. At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and la ...

had won the event, but that was reversed a few minutes later by a jury of the

International Canoe Federation The International Canoe Federation (ICF) is the umbrella organization of all national canoe organizations worldwide. It is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, and administers all aspects of canoe sport worldwide. 157 countries are affiliate ...

that American

Greg Barton Gregory Mark Barton (born December 2, 1959 in Jackson, Michigan) is an American sprint kayaker who competed from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. Competing in three Summer Olympics, he won four medals with two golds (K-1 1000 m, K-2 1000 m: ...

had won the event in a photo finish by 0.005 seconds. In the men's rowing coxless fours final, the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

team finished last to one of their seats breaking in the middle of the race. During the fifth race of the sailing Finn event near Busan,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

's Lawrence Lemieux was in second place when he noticed Joseph Chan of

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

in the water from his capsized boat.Wallechinsky, David and Jaime Loucky (2008). "Sailing: Men's Finn". In ''The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition''. London Aurum Press Limited. p. 827. Lemieux abandoned his position and rescued Chan and Chan's Singapore teammate. Even though Lemieux finished last in the race, the IOC gave him second place for the race as a result of Lemieux's heroic efforts. Lemieux would be awarded the IOC

Pierre de Coubertin medal The Pierre de Coubertin medal is a special decoration awarded by the International Olympic Committee that "pays tribute to institutions with a pedagogical and educational role and to people who, through their research and the creation of intellect ...

at the Finn medal awards ceremony by President

Juan Antonio Samaranch Juan Antonio Samaranch y Torelló, 1st Marquess of Samaranch (Catalan: ''Joan Antoni Samaranch i Torelló'', ; 17 July 1920 – 21 April 2010) was a Spanish sports administrator under the Franco regime (1973–1977) who served as the seventh P ...

."Lemieux's sportsmanship still recognized".
Canada.com 13 March 2008 ''Edmonton Journal'' article Retrieved 2 December 2010. The tennis venue for the women's singles event witnessed

's Steffi Graf defeating

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

's Gabriella Sabatini to win the "Golden Slam", including the

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

events in Australia,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, Wimbledon, and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

After the Olympics

Olympic Stadium continues to be of use to many events as of 2010. When Korea co-hosted the

with Japan, none of the 1988 Summer Olympic venues used for football were used for those events.FIFA.com 2002 FIFA World Cup information.
Retrieved 2 December 2010. Dongdaemun Stadium was demolished in 2008.

References

{{1988 Summer Olympic venues 1988 Summer Olympic venues