Gyeongsangbuk-do announced that a total of 27,122 visitors flocked to the grand opening festival of "Let's Run Park Yeongcheon," held over four weekend days from September 12 to 20.

With child visitors reaching 7,029, the venue saw a high level of interest from families. The event drew a diverse crowd of visitors, ranging from families with toddlers to couples and friends.

During the opening festival, a variety of hands-on programs—such as feeding miniature horses and ponies and horse-themed crafting—won enthusiastic responses from children and families. This provided a great opportunity for children to get close to horses, build intimacy through direct interaction, and develop an interest in the horse industry and culture. Additionally, beginner racing classes were operated to guide visitors on racing rules and how to read racecards.

Building on this successful opening, Gyeongsangbuk-do plans to develop Let's Run Park Yeongcheon from a mere horse-racing-centric facility into a new regional tourism hub where horse culture, experiences, and tourism harmoniously blend. The province aims to expand seasonal cultural events and equine experience programs, activate spaces for strolls and relaxation, and develop tourism packages linked with Yeongcheon’s local tourism resources to extend visitors' stays and vitalize the local tourism economy. Furthermore, by expanding programs involving local agricultural specialties, food, and small business owners, the park will encourage visitors to utilize local commercial districts, thereby laying a foundation for mutual growth between the horse industry, tourism, and the local economy.

The province will also reinforce the park's tourism and leisure functions by smoothly promoting the second-phase park construction project. Once parks, rest areas, and experience facilities are expanded, the venue is expected to serve as a new tourism and leisure hub that citizens and tourists can visit not only on race days but also on weekdays. To ensure the smooth implementation of the second-phase project, Gyeongsangbuk-do plans to focus its administrative capabilities on swiftly resolving the issue of the total ceiling on local tax reductions, which currently acts as a restrictive factor, and establishing a solid foundation for the project.

Gyeongsangbuk-do Governor Lee Cheol-woo stated, "Let's Run Park Yeongcheon, which provincial and Yeongcheon citizens have eagerly awaited for 17 years, has opened its doors and taken its first step as a new leisure space for families and tourists." He added, "Moving beyond a simple horse-racing facility, we will develop it into a sound equine culture and leisure space where families can interact with horses, experience them, and enjoy themselves." He further emphasized, "We will promptly resolve the local tax reduction ceiling issue to push forward with the second-phase park construction project, and make every effort to position Let's Run Park Yeongcheon as Korea's leading horse industry and leisure tourism hub."

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