Rather than doing it for the love of the game . . .

Seoul National University is setting out to produce a home-grown Nobel Prize winner for the sake of producing a home-grown Nobel Prize winner.

In a speech to celebrate the school's 62nd anniversary, SNU President Lee Jang-moo said university members should seek to win the award as neighboring countries Japan and China have already seen many Nobel Prize laureates. ``If our faculty, alumni and supporters closely network and put their hands together for the goal, I’m confident that SNU faculty and graduates can attain the award, which all Korean people are dreaming of,'' Lee said.

If he were a baseball player everyone would hate him. But ambition is important, and I can see nothing wrong with his plan.

However, the president’s address lacked a specific action plan and ways to raise funds for the project.

More brooding from the Chosun Ilbo, and as you probably already guessed, there is a "Nobel Prize of Korea." If I work really hard I think I can win.

The Prizes in all categories are awarded to people of Korean ethnic origin.

Oh. Since I have you here, here's a KT article from 2004 copied to North Korea Watch which tells us of these Nobel Prize ambitions back then.

South Korea plans to shell out big bucks to foster a number of candidates capable of garnering the prestigious Nobel Prize, according to a senior official in Chong Wa Dae Sunday.

Park Ky-young, presidential adviser for science and technology, reported the grandiose scheme to president Roh Moo-hyun in August and it will be fully operational next year.

Under the plan, the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) will handpick around 10 promising scientists, who grab international attention with epoch-making expertise or research, and financially support their studies.

The MOST looks to provide at least several million dollars to scientists who have the potential to bring in the nation's first bona fide Nobel Prize.

"We want to support basic scientists who retain global competitiveness rather than spending money on applied scientists," Park said.

Former president Kim Dae-jung snatched the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his diplomatic efforts to bring peace to the Korean peninsula, as well as in promoting democracy and human rights here.

But aside from Kim's award, the nation has yet to gain a Nobel Prize especially in the fields of science or medicine.

Seoul National University professor Hwang Woo-suk could be the first candidate for the plan.

*cough* The article says the government had paid, at the time, 26.5 billion won for is "attention-grabbing" work, which pretty much sums it all up.