During a game bewteen the NC Dinos and the Kiwoom Heroes at Changwon NC Park on May 16, singer Eom Ji-young drew considerable controversy with her rendition of the national anthem, “Aegukga.” Unlike the conventional style of singing the anthem, Eom incorporated high notes and various vocal flourishes. A video of her performance quickly spread online, prompting criticism that she had undermined the anthem’s essence and purity. Eom eventually apologized. “National ceremonies” at Korean baseball stadiums have repeatedly found themselves at the center of controversy. During the 2017 World Baseball Classic, Kim Tae-kyun came under fire after saluting during the playing of the national anthem, imitating Lee Dae-eun, who at the time was a member of the Korean Police Baseball Team. Kim later apologized on his YouTube channel, saying he did not fully understand the precise meaning of the salute and had simply followed Lee because he felt sorry for his teammate standing alone and saluting. There have also been cases in which controversy over conduct during a national ceremony led to a p