"Turkey is our brother who sent many soldiers to the Korean War. How are we supposed to sit down when it is playing in the World Cup Finals?" said Psychiatrist Lee Shi-hyung, the cheerleader of Team Turkey.
Dr. Lee is going to cheer Turkish players, in all of the games set for June 3 in Ulsan, June 9 in Incheon, and June 13 in Seoul with a troop of some 70 supporters and 200 Turkish back packers alongside the South Korea-Turkey Friendship Society, which is planning to give away Turkish national flags.
The society dates back to August 1999 when chairman Lee began a fund-raising campaign for the Turkish people who had suffered from a big earthquake. "I have no connection with the country, but just wanted to help them to see the governmental aid was too small compared to the degree of the disaster. This time around, it's a different from the past one. I would love to cheer them while enjoying the soccer play," he added.
(Choi Seung-hyeon, vaidale@chosun.com)
