Everland unveils lion cub 'Raon,' first born at the park in 8 years

Everland, operated by Samsung C&T's resort division, announced Wednesday that Raon, a lion cub born at the park for the first time in eight years, is now open to the public. Visitors can meet the cub at Ppuppa Town in the Everland zoo starting Wednesday.

Raon, a male lion born in Safari World, was raised by hand after his mother was unable to care for him following birth. Zookeepers stepped in as surrogate caregivers, bottle-feeding the cub and closely monitoring his health.

The name Raon was given last month by Yang Chang-seop, a pitcher for the Samsung Lions baseball club. Yang visited Everland during a break after the All-Star Game and named the cub after the youngest character in the Samsung Lions' mascot family, "Bleo Family."

Under that care, Raon has grown healthily, now weighing more than 5.5 kilograms. The cub is meeting visitors for the first time at around two months of age.

"Raon, who has grown up healthy thanks to the dedication and attentive care of our zookeepers, is finally getting to meet our customers at Ppuppa Town," an Everland official said. "We hope everyone will cheer on Raon as he takes his first curious steps into the world."