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"Underwear performance at the presidential palace if we win the Asian Games" promise kept
Former SK Wyverns manager Lee "Hulk" Man-soo performed an "underwear performance" with the Laos National Baseball Team.
"As a baseball person, I am grateful that I was able to fulfill my promise to visit the Presidential Palace and Patouxay with the players," Lee said on Tuesday.
Lee's underwear performance commemorates the Lao baseball team's historic first win at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.
In April, Lee made a pledge: "If Laos wins the Asian Games, I will take a lap with the players at the presidential palace wearing only my underwear."
Lee, who brought baseball to the "baseball barrens" of Laos in 2014, is attending the tournament as the head of the Lao National Baseball Team's staff.
He made the same pledge five years ago in the lead-up to the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang tournament, where Laos was eliminated without a win.
This time, it was different. Laos beat Singapore 8-7 in the Asian Games baseball qualifying round on March 27.
Back in 2007, when Lee was the head coach of SK, he vowed to perform in his underwear if the team reached a sellout crowd at their home stadium, Incheon Munhak Stadium, which he did that year.
Fast-forward 16 years, and Lee set out to do it again.There were challenges. "Patuxay is a famous war memorial in Laos. "My first thought after the Singapore victory was whether the socialist Lao government would allow me to run topless in such a place," he said.
Fortunately, they did.
Jane Nae, the head coach of the Lao women's national baseball team, reached out to Lee and said, "The Lao government allowed me to run laps in front of the Presidential Palace and Patoucay with the national baseball team on the 20th, wearing only my underwear. However, the players have to run in marathon clothes, not underwear." Kamphai, the president of the Lao Baseball Association, said he would run with them.
Lee was able to keep his promise.
"On that day, I ran a lap with my staff, players, and women's baseball players in front of the Presidential Palace, shouting happily and joyfully. There were about 40 people who participated," he said, adding, "I am truly grateful to everyone who ran with me that day."
"I'm really a happy person. When you hope and dream, you get people who want to help, and that's why I can't stop playing baseball in Laos," he added. 19가이드03