Korea Habitat for Humanity and singer Sean-led charity marathon "815 Run" was successfully held to mark Liberation Day in 2026.
"815 Run" is a campaign to recall the joy of liberation and express gratitude to independence patriots who sacrificed for the country, delivering the positive message "It will be all right, Korea!" to society. Since its first step in 2020, this year marks the seventh edition, and through this event about 2.6 billion won was raised to support housing for descendants of independence patriots. With this, the campaign's cumulative fund exceeded 10 billion won.
This year's event was divided into a "virtual run" held from Aug. 1 to 23 and an "offline run" held on the 15th at Seoul's World Cup Park in Sangam. The offline event was especially meaningful with a record 7,000 participants.
Virtual run participants chose one of 3.1km, 4.5km or 8.15km at their preferred location, posted proof on their personal social media or Naver Happy Bean, and received benefits such as Galaxy watches through a lottery. On Liberation Day, offline participants who completed the 8.15km course enjoyed a special concert staged by Sean and Yoon Do-hyun.
Before the main event, Sean began running an 81.5km course from dawn that day and completed the race in 8 hours, 20 minutes and 02 seconds, delivering a moving moment. Forty-five pacers including Lee Young-pyo, Park Bo Gum, Cho Won-hee and Kwak Yoon-gi supported him in teams of five. The approximately 2.6 billion won and 482,000 won raised by about 150 sponsoring corporations and participants will be used in full to repair and build homes for households of descendants of independence patriots.
Ahead of the Race, Sean told participants, "I think the 8.15km we run together is like a thank-you letter to the independence patriots who devoted themselves to the country," and expressed a sincere wish that "children and adolescents also continue this spirit."
Ma Hee-ja, chairwoman of Korea Habitat for Humanity, also said, "The charity marathon '815 Run,' started to convey gratitude to independence patriots, marks its seventh edition this year," and said she hopes "that with the participation of many runners and the help of sponsoring corporations, we can provide safe and warm homes to more households of descendants of independence patriots."
Korea Habitat for Humanity has dedicated 23 new dwellings to descendants of independence patriots with funds raised over the past seven years through about 70,000 runners, 270 pacers and 385 corporations, and is now stepping up construction of houses Nos. 24–32.
[Photo] Provided by Korea Habitat for Humanity
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