▲ Kim Cheon-soo, Chairman of the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Residents’ Central Committee The ‘2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics’, a winter festival held by youth from all over the world, is just around the corner. The competition, which will be held in Pyeongchang, Gangneung, Jeongseon, and Hoengseong in Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province for two weeks from the 19th to February January, presented the vision of ‘sports that bring joy and growth, and a peaceful future opened by coexistence and harmony.’ This is Asia’s first Winter Youth Olympics, and will be held on the largest scale ever, with a total of 15,000 participants, including 1,900 youth athletes from over 80 countries.
This competition, which follows the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, is also an opportunity to inform the world that Gangwon Self-Governing Province has established itself as a world-class winter sports destination. It is also an opportunity to once again show Gangwon Self-Governing Province’s development toward the future by actively utilizing the world-class competition facilities and competition operation know-how of the PyeongChang Olympics.
This competition will feature a total of 7 competitions, including 3 ice sports and 4 snow sports. The ice skating competition is held in Gangneung, and the Gangneung Oval (speed skating rink), where the opening ceremony and speed skating are held, has once again become an international competition venue after the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. Snow sports are held in places such as Pyeongchang, Hoengseong, and Jeongseon. Unlike the adult Olympics, it was planned as a festival in which youth could directly participate and enjoy by providing not only games but also various educational and cultural programs. It also provides opportunities to experience various cultures of Korea, including the K Culture Festival featuring famous domestic K-pop artists, various cultural performances, enjoying traditional Korean games and food, and trying on Hanbok.
In order for the competition to be held successfully, it is more important than anything else for the residents of Gangwon-do to work together. During the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, 2 million Gangwon-do residents took the lead in purchasing tickets and watching unpopular sports. Under the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Citizens’ Central Association, 68 residents’ associations across the country, including 21 in the Seoul area, are currently active and are putting their all into the successful operation of this competition.
Ahead of this tournament, overseas tourists are also flocking to Gangwon Self-Governing Province. As skyways began to open in earnest after the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of foreigners visiting the Gangwon region, which has many mountainous areas and ski resorts, is increasing. In particular, tourism products that combine snow, ice, winter seas, and mountains are receiving a lot of attention from tourists from Southeast Asia and Greater China. Using this competition as an opportunity, developing many high-quality winter experience tourism products and promoting Gangwon Self-Governing Province abroad to attract foreigners will greatly help revitalize the local economy.
By hosting the Winter Youth Olympics, Korea will become the only Asian country to have held all the Summer Olympics, Winter Olympics, and Youth Olympics. The future of Gangwon Self-Governing Province, which is expanding to the world, must be widely known at the Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics, a dream center where youth from all over the world gather in one place.
2024-01-08 17:35:16
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