[Photo] Event celebrates Samcheok’s traditional “kijul” tug-of-war game

The city of Samcheok held an event to commemorate a 350-year-old tradition of the “crab leg tug-of-war” game on Feb. 22. The event, called, “Kijul” (“jul” means “rope” and “ki” means crab in the Samcheok dialect) began during the Joseon Dynasty period and was held annually on the day of the first full moon of the new year. The Japanese abolished the tradition during the colonial period, but it was revived in 1973, and was designated as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2015. The rope used in the event is 180 meters long and weighs six tons. 500 people participate on each side of the tug-of-war.