2026-loc

2026-loc@lists.robocup.org

March 2026

2 participants
2 discussions

RoboCup 2026 - Visa Invitation Letter Template
by Asad Norouzi 18 Mar '26

18 Mar '26

Dear LOC, We have created this mailing list for easier communication. We have an urgent request. As you know, the registration is schedule to go live tomorrow (March 16th). Roberto proposed some changes to the visa invitation letter template. We would like to ask if you have verified the proposed changes If not, are you able to provide us with an estimated timeline for when we can expect to hear back from you about this? Best Regards, Asad

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Re: 회신: Re: RoboCup 2026 questions + meetings
by Raymond Sheh 15 Mar '26

15 Mar '26

Hi YoungJe, We've having some more discussion at our end and at this point it would be easiest if we could have an email address for the logistics company that the teams can reach out to. We can make sure this email address is well publicized. Part of the problem with waiting until teams have registered and then having the logistics company contact them is that due to the high logistics costs in some past years, some teams are basing their decision to register on the estimated logistics cost and so will want to contact the logistics company prior to registering. The other problem is that there isn't an easy way to provide external organizations with a "live feed" of the registered contact details. I suppose we could do it in batches but in such a case, it may still be faster for the teams to reach out to the logistics company themselves rather than wait for the next batch and then have the logistics company reach out to them. So I don't think this is likely to be practical. What do you think? Cheers! - Raymond P.S. Due to the number of people to be emailed for LOC related mattesr, we've decided to set up this mailing list to make sure no-one gets left out. Of course if, going forward, more people should be included, please let us know and we can add them to this mailing list. On 2026-03-14 4:13 PM, Raymond Sheh wrote: > Hi YoungJe, > > Thank you for your email! > > The registration process opens next week (assuming we have > confirmation of the invitation letter template that Roberto emailed > about) so right now we don't have any confirmed teams. > > (Individual leagues might have qualified teams but not all qualified > teams choose to come in the end.) > > At this stage would it be better for you to give us an email address > for the logistics contact that we could tell all teams to get in touch > with? > > Perhaps later on when we have more teams registered, we can also come > up with a list of the teams that we can provide to cross reference and > contact if they haven't already. Of course not all teams will need the > services of the logistics company (eg simulation teams and teams with > smaller robots who prefer to bring them themselves). > > Thanks for the confirmation regarding Russian citizens. > > Cheers! > > Raymond > > On Sat, Mar 14, 2026, 3:20 AM 김영제 <youngjekim(a)korearobot.or.kr> wrote: > > Dear Raymond Sheh, > > First of all, as mentioned earlier, we will update the > logistics -related announcement on the RoboCup website. > > However, considering the schedule, the logistics guidelines should > ideally be released in March so that robots can be shipped without > any issues before the competition in June. > Therefore, it would be helpful for us to obtain a contact DB even > for the teams that have been confirmed so far. We would appreciate > it if you could review this. > > As you are aware, Russia is currently involved in a war. > Legally, there is no restriction preventing Russian citizens from > entering the Republic of Korea. > However, while we can provide an Invitation Letter, based on > expert opinions, obtaining an entry visa may not be easy. > Ultimately, we believe that securing the entry visa is the > responsibility of the individual applicant. > > Thank you > > Best Regards, > > 김 영 제 / 대리 / 운영지원실 > T : 02-780-3060 / M : 010-3098-0585 E : > youngjekim(a)korearobot.or.kr W : http://www.korearobot.or.kr > 본사: 서울시 용산구 한강대로 31 금영빌딩 8층 > 수서사무실: 서울시 강남구 광평로39길 112 > 관련 사이트: 🌐 [로보월드] | 🤖 > [지능형로봇표준포럼] | 🧑‍💼 [로봇캠퍼스] | 🏛️ [로봇자동화협력플랫폼] > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > 보낸 사람 : Raymond Sheh <raymondsheh(a)gmail.com> > 보낸 날짜 : 2026-03-13 11:46:18 ( +09:00 ) > 받는 사람 : 김영제 <youngjekim(a)korearobot.or.kr>,Robocup(로보컵) > <robocup(a)korearobot.or.kr> > 참조 : raymondsheh(a)gmail.com > <raymondsheh(a)gmail.com>,"visser(a)cs.miami.edu" > <visser(a)cs.miami.edu>,"M.J.G.v.d.Molengraft(a)tue.nl" > <M.J.G.v.d.Molengraft(a)tue.nl>,"okada(a)tid.ac.jp" > <okada(a)tid.ac.jp>,전한구 <jhg(a)korearobot.or.kr>,"blinds(a)itp.or.kr" > <blinds(a)itp.or.kr>,"jspark(a)itp.or.kr" > <jspark(a)itp.or.kr>,"ahralovekw(a)itp.or.kr" > <ahralovekw(a)itp.or.kr>,한재권 > <jkhan(a)hanyang.ac.kr>,"shealeum(a)arobot4all.com" > <shealeum(a)arobot4all.com>,Maike Paetzel-Prüsmann > <me(a)maike-paetzel.de>,Asad Norouzi <asad.norouzi(a)gmail.com> > 제목 : Re: 회신: Re: RoboCup 2026 questions + meetings > > > Hi YoungJe, > > Thanks for your reply and the template! > > Regarding the template, we share your concern about misuse and the teams > > will only receive completed letters, not the blank template. I have > forwarded the template to Roberto Bonilla, who is our Trustee in charge > > of registration. > > Thanks also for the information regarding the logistics provider! We > appreciate the desire to proactively reach out to the teams. I will make > > some inquiries although at this time of year we usually only have a > partial understanding of which teams are confirmed. > > Have you been able to get any further clarity regarding any local > restrictions on Russian citizens? > > Cheers! > > - Raymond > > On 2026-03-12 10:25 PM, 김영제 wrote: > > Dear All, > > > > Hi. This is YoungJe Kim from KAR. > > We sincerely apologize for the delayed response. > > > > [Invitation Letter] > > We have revised the Invitation Letter template currently used by KAR to reflect the details for RoboCup 2026. > > In general, when entering Korea from overseas, visitors from countries that require a visa should fill in their personal information (in gray font) in the template. > > The document is then converted into a PDF and used for visa application purposes. > > > > If there are visitors who require an Invitation Letter, you may distribute this template to them. > > Alternatively, if you provide us with the visitor’s information, we can issue the letter and send it to them directly. > > > > However, there is a possibility that the letter could be misused by individuals who are not actual RoboCup participants but attempt to enter Korea using the document. > > For this reason, making the template publicly available may cause issues. Therefore, it should only be distributed to teams or participants who will actually attend the event. > > > > [Official Logistics Provider] > > We plan to select the official logistics provider next week and will upload the shipping request form on the RoboCup 2026 website. > > In addition, the logistics provider will contact the teams directly to provide guidance on how to use their services. > > Therefore, if possible, we would appreciate it if you could share the contact points of the teams that have been confirmed so far. > > This will allow the logistics provider to communicate directly with them. > > > > Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions. > > > > Thank you > > > > Best Reagrds, > > > > 김 영 제 / 대리 / 운영지원실 > > T : 02-780-3060 / M : 010-3098-0585 E : > youngjekim(a)korearobot.or.kr W : http://www.korearobot.or.kr > > 본사: 서울시 용산구 한강대로 31 금영빌딩 8층 > > 수서사무실: 서울시 강남구 광평로39길 112 > > 관련 사이트: 🌐 [로보월드] | 🤖 [지능형로봇표준포럼] | 🧑‍💼 [로봇캠퍼스] | 🏛️ [로봇자동화협력플랫폼] > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > 보낸 사람 : Raymond Sheh <raymondsheh(a)gmail.com> > > 보낸 날짜 : 2026-03-10 22:04:31 ( +09:00 ) > > 받는 사람 : Robocup(로보컵) <robocup(a)korearobot.or.kr> > > 참조 : > raymondsheh(a)gmail.com <raymondsheh(a)gmail.com>,"visser(a)cs.miami.edu" <visser(a)cs.miami.edu>,"M.J.G.v.d.Molengraft(a)tue.nl" <M.J.G.v.d.Molengraft(a)tue.nl>,"okada(a)tid.ac.jp" <okada(a)tid.ac.jp>,전한구 <jhg(a)korearobot.or.kr>,김영제 <youngjekim(a)korearobot.or.kr>,"blinds(a)itp.or.kr" <blinds(a)itp.or.kr>,"jspark(a)itp.or.kr" <jspark(a)itp.or.kr>,"ahralovekw(a)itp.or.kr" <ahralovekw(a)itp.or.kr>,한재권 <jkhan(a)hanyang.ac.kr>,"shealeum(a)arobot4all.com" <shealeum(a)arobot4all.com>,Maike Paetzel-Prüsmann <me(a)maike-paetzel.de>,Asad Norouzi <asad.norouzi(a)gmail.com> > > 제목 : Re: RoboCup 2026 questions + meetings > > > > > > Hi All! > > > > Bumping this as requested. In particular, we need clarity on the visa > > situation (both the template for visa letters and the situation with > > Russian citizens) - see points 4 and 5 below. > > > > Cheers! > > > > - Raymond > > > > On 2026-02-01 2:00 PM, Raymond Sheh wrote: > >> Hi Ahra, > >> > >> Thanks for your information! I have passed it along as relevant and we > >> will get back to you shortly. Please of course do not hesitate to > >> contact us with any updates or questions. > >> > >> Cheers! > >> > >> - Raymond > >> > >> On 2026-01-30 1:00 AM, Robocup(로보컵) wrote: > >>> Thank you very much for your detailed message. We appreciate you > >>> outlining these points clearly — it is very helpful for ensuring that > >>> we remain fully aligned and avoid any unintended delays. Please find > >>> our responses below. > >>> > >>> 1. Subsidy support / LOC Fee invoices > >>> Regarding the earlier question on “subsidy support,” we would like to > >>> clarify that this refers to the invoices for the agreed LOC Fee to > >>> RCF, as stipulated in the contract, rather than travel support for > >>> teams under Section A3.2. > >>> > >>> In particular, we would appreciate your guidance on whether there are > >>> any specific required documents, procedures, or a prescribed invoice > >>> format that should be followed when issuing these invoices. > >>> As the contract specifies 15 February 2026 as the date for issuing > >>> the first invoice, we would like to ensure that we are fully prepared > >>> and compliant with RCF’s internal processes in advance. > >>> > >>> 2. League requirements and LOC contacts > >>> Thank you for sharing the update on the leagues’ initial draft > >>> requirements. We understand that these drafts will need further > >>> discussion and refinement in coordination with the LOC. > >>> > >>> We are pleased to inform you that the LOC contacts for each league > >>> have now been confirmed. > >>> The contact details are provided in Appendix A and are also > >>> summarized in the table below for ease of reference. > >>> > >>> We apologize for the delay in sharing this information and sincerely > >>> appreciate your patience. We hope this will help the leagues close > >>> the loop efficiently and move forward with the next steps. > >>> > >>> 3. Hotel recommendations for Trustees > >>> There are several good-quality hotels located near the competition > >>> venue. > >>> We have prepared a short list of recommended hotels, including basic > >>> information, URLs, and approximate room rates based on current pricing. > >>> > >>> Please refer to Appendix B for further details. > >>> > >>> In parallel, we are currently in contact with nearby hotels to > >>> explore whether special promotional rates or benefits can be offered > >>> for RoboCup participants and visitors. Once this is confirmed, we > >>> will share an update with RCF accordingly. > >>> > >>> 4. Visa procedures and invitation letter > >>> At present, we are checking the visa procedures and the draft format > >>> of a visa invitation letter with the relevant authorities. This > >>> process is taking some time, but we are actively following up. > >>> We will provide a consolidated update on this matter in a separate > >>> email as soon as the information is finalized. > >>> > >>> 5. Local restrictions regarding Russian citizens > >>> Similarly, we are currently confirming this issue with the relevant > >>> government departments. > >>> Once we receive clear guidance on any applicable local restrictions, > >>> we will summarize and share the information with you in a follow-up > >>> email. > >>> > >>> 6. Media team coordination > >>> The selection of the local media team is currently in progress. Once > >>> the media partner is finalized, we will share the relevant contact > >>> details with you by email. > >>> In the meantime, we kindly ask that any media-related coordination be > >>> directed to us via the following email address: > robocup(a)korearobot.or.kr > >>> > >>> 7. Regular coordination meetings > >>> A preliminary list of participants is as follows (subject to > >>> confirmation): > >>> > >>> - Hangoo Jeon, The General Manager, KAR(Korea Association of AI Robot > >>> industry) > >>> - Youngje Kim, Manager, KAR(Korea Association of AI Robot industry) > >>> - Kyuhwan Han, Director, ITP(Incheon Technopark) > >>> - Jaeseo Park, Senior Researcher, ITP(Incheon Technopark) > >>> - Ahra Cho, Manager, ITP(Incheon Technopark) > >>> > >>> We would appreciate it if you could share the expected participants > >>> from the RCF side as well, so that we can finalize the LOC attendance > >>> accordingly. > >>> > >>> > >>> Once we understand your preference, we will move forward accordingly. > >>> Thank you again for your cooperation and continued support. We look > >>> forward to working closely together as we move ahead. > >>> > >>> Kind regards, > >>> Ahra > >>> > >>> > >>> Robocup 2026 Incheon Local Organizing Committee > >>> E-mail: robocup(a)korearobot.or.kr > >>> Website: http://2026.robocup.org (Be preparing) > >>> Office: RoboCup 2026 LOC Office / 5F, Robot R&D Center, 155-30 Robot > >>> Land-ro, Seo-gu, Incheon, Republic of Korea > >>> > >>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > >>> 보낸 사람 : Raymond Sheh <raymondsheh(a)gmail.com> > >>> 보낸 날짜 : 2026-01-22 04:52:58 ( +09:00 ) > >>> 받는 사람 : Robocup(로보컵) <robocup(a)korearobot.or.kr> > >>> 참조 : raymondsheh(a)gmail.com <raymondsheh(a)gmail.com>,박재서 > >>> <jspark(a)itp.or.kr>,Ubbo Visser <visser(a)cs.miami.edu>,Molengraft, René > >>> van de <M.J.G.v.d.Molengraft(a)tue.nl>,'岡田浩之' <okada(a)tid.ac.jp> > >>> 제목 : RoboCup 2026 questions + meetings > >>> Hi RoboCup 2026 Secretariat, > >>> We just wanted to revisit a few points and make sure we're not in a > >>> situation where we're all inadvertently waiting for each other. > >>> 1: At some point we had received a question about "subsidy support" but > >>> I don't remember seeing details about what subsidy exactly was being > >>> asked about. Are you referring to travel support for the teams (section > >>> A3.2 in the contract) or something else? > >>> 2: The leagues are finalizing their initial draft requirements and > >>> specifications for the competition venue and we should have those to you > >>> shortly. However, please understand that these are an initial draft. > >>> Most leagues will still need to have some discussion with their LOC > >>> contact in order to refine these and provide the detailed specifications > >>> based on what is available locally (normally this would already be > >>> happening). If possible, please provide us with the contact details of > >>> the LOC contacts for the leagues that you already know so they can close > >>> this loop. > >>> 3: Is there a hotel close to the venue that you would recommend the > >>> Trustees stay at? > >>> 4: Is there an update as to the progress of visa procedures and a > >>> drafted visa letter suitable for participants from countries that > >>> require a visa to enter Korea? > >>> 5: Is there any update as to any local restrictions on Russian citizens? > >>> In general, RoboCup policy is that participants do not represent > >>> countries, rather they are affiliated with institutions, so our > >>> restrictions are that participants and teams affiliated with Russian > >>> institutions (be it in Russia or in a Russian institution in a 3rd > >>> country) cannot participate, however we would like to know if there are > >>> additional restrictions within South Korea that we should be aware of. > >>> 6: Is there an update as to who our media team should be coordinating > >>> with in the LOC? > >>> 7: We would like to start having some regular meetings, perhaps once a > >>> month, between the contact trustees and the LOC, to have regular status > >>> updates and identify and solve issues early. Please suggest who on the > >>> LOC should be in the meeting and we can schedule some telecons. > >>> Cheers! > >>> - Raymond > >>> -- > >>> https://raymondsheh.org > >> > > > > -- > > https://raymondsheh.org > > > -- > https://raymondsheh.org > -- https://raymondsheh.org

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