Last summer, the whole world was enthusiastic about the 2012 London Olympics. So was Korea. Korea ranked fifth in the total medal rankings this Olympic year. Archery was, to say the least, the event that greatly contributed to Korea's success in the medal ranking. As much as people nowadays take the equation ‘Archery=Korea’ for granted, Korea has always been performing best in archery. So what is behind the secret of this success? Various international presses shed light on Korea's 'Chopsticks Culture,’ believing that this is the underlying secret.
 
           Foreign presses have a lot of interest about Korean archery, the field where Koreans were able to win seven consecutive times since their first great victory in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Presses analyzed the reason. One of the most prominent reasons is Korea's culture of using chopsticks. The Reuter’s News Agency asserted that using chopsticks greatly helps Koreans. Likewise, they believed it was a contributing factor that has been the driving force to excel in archery. Chopsticks first appeared during the Warring States Period in Chinese history. It was disseminated from China to Korea, then from Korea to Japan. Korea has been using chopsticks for 1800 years since the Three Kingdoms Period of Korea. Many Asian countries other than Korea use chopsticks as well. However, they use chopsticks made of wood. On the other hand, Koreans use metallic chopsticks made of iron, stainless steel, etc. Metallic chopsticks are more difficult to use than wooden chopsticks, because metallic ones are thinner and sleeker. As a result, the chopsticks allow Koreans to become dexterous. The team director of Korean national women archery, Baek Woong-ki, claimed this point as true. He said, “Doctors in the medical field also use the term ‘Chopsticks’ technique’. In other words, using chopsticks requires detailed hand techniques. Korean women archers are excellent in that field.”
 
           As mentioned earlier, 15 nations in Asia share a food culture that uses chopsticks. However, the reason why Korea is ahead in archery, golf, and so on is primarily due to Korea's culture of using metallic chopsticks. Then why does Korea have a different chopsticks culture?
           Nowadays, 80% of the population in Korea, China and Japan use chopsticks. Thus let’s compare the three nations. The biggest reason why they have different cultures lies in the difference of eating habits. The Chinese eat mostly oily food. In addition, because the food is placed at the center of the table, the distance between food and people is long. Therefore Chinese people use long and wooden chopsticks. Japan places rice, soup, and other side dishes separately for each person. The food is put right in front of the person and people hold their bowl in one hand when they eat. Hence they don’t have to use long chopsticks.
           On the other hand, Koreans should pick up various side dishes such as cooked vegetables, smooth boiled beans, soft jelly and so on. Because there was a difference in the style of side dishes, Koreans naturally needed its own distinguished set of chopsticks, thereby adopting metallic chopsticks. Unlike wooden chopsticks that can't transfer the power of hand due to its lightness, metallic chopsticks convey the power of the hand to the last.
           By using chopsticks, people are able to move 30 joints including the palm, wrist, arm and use 50 different muscles in our body. In contrast, when people use forks, they are only able to move half of the amount of joints and muscles. This is why Koreans cannot help but to develop their hand muscles. In addition, because chopsticks stimulate the cerebrum of the brain, people can become smarter. Korea's special chopsticks culture has indeed been the foundation of our victories in archery, golf, International Apprentices Competition, and the list goes on.
저작권자 © 중앙헤럴드 무단전재 및 재배포 금지