<div dir="ltr"><div>Dear Organizers,</div><div><span style="background-color:transparent">Could you circulate this CFP? Thank you!</span></div><div><span style="background-color:transparent">==</span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Call for
Papers/Panelists: 33rd Biennial AKSE Conference (Bucharest, June 24\u201327, 2027)<br>
<br>
We are seeking <b>two additional presenters</b>
to complete a panel proposal for the 33rd Biennial Association for Korean
Studies in Europe (AKSE) Conference, to be held at the University of Bucharest,
Romania, from June 24\u201327, 2027. (</span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="https://koreanstudies.eu/conferences/33rd-akse-conference-2027-bucharest/" style="color:rgb(5,99,193)"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">https://koreanstudies.eu/conferences/33rd-akse-conference-2027-bucharest/</span></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">) <br>
<br>
</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Panel Title: Love and Hate: Sports Celebrities,
Transnational Fandom, and the Reconfiguration of Korea-Japan Relations<br>
</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><br>
Organizers: </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Prof. Hwang,
Seongbin (Rikkyo University, Japan) </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Prof. Cho,
Younghan (Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, South Korea) </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><br>
Sports have long served as a primary arena for articulating national identity,
post-colonial tension, and historical memory between South Korea and Japan. Yet,
the migration of athletes and media texts between the two nations has produced
a far more nuanced landscape\u2014one defined by a dialectic of "love and
hate." This panel critically explores how sports celebrities,
transnational fandom, and cross-border media framing reconfigure regional
dynamics and national identity from the mid-twentieth century to the
contemporary era.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">To capture the
longevity and transformation of this phenomenon, the panel grounds its analysis
in historical perspective. We trace the lineage of athletic identity
negotiation back to foundational post-war figures like Rikidozan, Kim Il (Ooki
Kintaro), and Antonio Inoki, whose performances in professional wrestling
mediated complex post-colonial anxieties, Zainichi identity, and national pride
across both borders. We connect these historical roots to contemporary
developments across diverse sports. Case studies include the striking
cross-border empathy within media framing\u2014such as Japanese media's defense of
South Korean football manager Hong Myung-bo following the 2026 World Cup\u2014as
well as the trajectory of players like Park Ji-sung who built foundational
careers in Japan.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Furthermore, the
panel investigates the unprecedented South Korean fandom surrounding Japanese
baseball icon Shohei Ohtani, alongside multi-layered figures like Choo
Sung-hoon (Yoshihiro Akiyama) and Jong Tae-se, whose movement between combat
sports and variety television highlights the shifting politics of identity,
hybridity, and commercial stardom.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">By employing
multidisciplinary approaches from media sociology, sports history, and cultural
studies, this panel deconstructs how sports celebrities function as fluid
cultural texts. Ultimately, we argue that while sports remain a lightning rod
for nationalistic friction, they simultaneously provide an enduring
infrastructure for cross-border intimacy, critical hybridity, and mutual
cultural recognition.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><br>
This panel focuses on the sports culture and media landscape of South Korea,
specifically examining how athlete migration, media representation, and
cross-border fandom navigate the tension between nationalist friction and
cultural affinity in Korea-Japan relations. We welcome paper proposals spanning
historical and contemporary perspectives, including:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 12pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><br>
Historical Genealogies: Analyses of post-war sports figures (e.g., Rikidozan,
Kim Il, Antonio Inoki) and their roles in mediating post-colonial memory,
Zainichi identity, and early cross-border media consumption.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 12pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Transnational Fandom & Affinity:
Critical studies of contemporary Japanese sports celebrities who command
massive popularity in South Korea (e.g., the Shohei Ohtani phenomenon) and friendship
between Korean and Japanese (e.g., Sang-hwa Lee and Nao Kodaira in women\u2019s
speed skating), and how this fandom interacts with national sentiment.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 12pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Bilateral Media Framing & Migration:
How Japanese or South Korean media represent foreign athletic figures,
including contemporary cases (e.g., Japanese media discourse surrounding
manager Hong Myung-bo) or historical trajectories in football, baseball, and
other sports (e.g., Park Ji-sung).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 12pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Hybrid Identities & Commercial
Stardom: Examinations of boundary-crossing figures (e.g., Choo
Sung-hoon/Yoshihiro Akiyama) who operate across sports, reality television, and
public culture in both nations.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;word-break:keep-all;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">Per AKSE\u2019s
evaluation guidelines, panel proposals that feature institutional,
geographical, gender, and career-stage diversity are given preference. We
warmly invite submissions from PhD candidates, early-career researchers, and
established scholars.<br>
<br>
Submission Instructions:<br>
<br>
Please send an abstract of up to 300 words, a paper title, 3 keywords, and a
brief institutional biography to </span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="mailto:seongbin@rikkyo.ac.jp" style="color:rgb(5,99,193)"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">seongbin@rikkyo.ac.jp</span></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> & </span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="mailto:choy@hufs.ac.kr" style="color:rgb(5,99,193)"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">choy@hufs.ac.kr</span></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> by <b>August 28,
2026</b>. This will give the organizers time to select papers and compile the
submission prior to the official AKSE portal deadline on September 15, 2026.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;text-align:justify;line-height:107%;font-size:10pt;font-family:"\00b9d1\00c740 \00ace0\00b515""><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> </span></p></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><span class="gmail_signature_prefix">-- </span><br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div>Professor in Korean Studies(Ph.D in Communication Studies)</div><div>Graduate School of International and Area Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (Seoul, South Korea)</div><div>Homepage: <a href="https://hufs.academia.edu/YounghanCho" target="_blank">https://hufs.academia.edu/YounghanCho</a></div></div></div></div></div></div>