This event marks the first Winter Youth Olympics held in Asia―featuring seven sports, 15 disciplines, and up to 81 detailed events. The specific sports include figure skating (short track, speed, figure), snow skiing (alpine, freestyle, snowboard, ski jumping, cross-country, Nordic combined), ice hockey, curling, biathlon, bobsleigh¡¤skeleton and luge.

The number of participating athletes is expected to set a record at 1,900―surpassing the previous record of 1,788 from the Lausanne 2020. Similar to the last competition, the gender ratio of male to female athletes will be equal. The event will occur from Jan. 19 to Feb. 1, spanning across Gangneung City, Pyeongchang-gun, Jeongseon-gun and Hoengseong-gun in Gangwon-do Province.

The slogan for this Winter Olympics is ¡°Together, Shine Forever.¡± ¡°Together¡± embodies spreading peace, harmony and coexistence through youth participation. ¡°Shine Forever¡± reflects the goals of Gangwon 2024―seeking the growth of youth and future-oriented changes.

The mascot is named ¡°Moongcho,¡± a character that visualizes the snowball (Moongchi in Korean) used in the popular Korean winter game of snowball fights. It represents the speed characteristic of sports while conveying the message of everyone enjoying the competition with the values and spirit of the Youth Olympics, much like a snowball fight where there are no winners or losers.

Various Moongcho merchandise―including dolls, clothing and stationery―can be found by searching for ¡°Olympic¡± on the online store sponsored by AliExpress or the AliExpress APP. Commemorative stamps featuring Moongcho can be purchased from a post office in Korea or via the online post office (www.epost.go.kr).

Visitors can watch all the games for free except for the opening ceremony on Jan. 19. However, entry tickets for ice sports must be obtained online or on-site. To watch the snow and sliding sports games, one can make reservations online or enter the venue for free without an admission ticket through on-site registration.

The opening ceremony will co-occur at the Gangneung Oval and Pyeongchang Dome in Pyeongchang-gun from 8:00 p.m. on Jan. 19, lasting 80 minutes. K-pop stars and cultural performers are scheduled to appear and showcase performances. Admission tickets for the opening ceremony in Gangneung City are available for sale at KRW 30,000, KRW 80,000 and KRW 100,000, depending on the seating category. The Pyeongchang Dome will broadcast the opening ceremony live from Gangneung City, and although admission is free, advance ticket registration is required. Tickets can be reserved through the Organizing Committee¡¯s ticket reservation website (tickets. gangwon2024.org).

For the first time in the history of the Winter Youth Olympics, there will be no events where athletes from different National Olympic Committees (NOCs) form a team. Consequently, these events will be replaced by team competitions where athletes from the same country form teams. Additionally, in Gangwon 2024, a 1,500-meter short-track speed skating event will be added. Cross-country skiing will introduce a mixed relay instead of a mixed NOC relay. Mixed team Nordic combined events will be held, and freestyle skiing and snowboarding will expand from eight to 12 events per discipline.

Kim Yuna, Ambassador of Gangwon 2024

Various services are provided to enjoy the festival at the Winter Youth Olympic Games. Firstly, in the four host cities of Gangwon 2024, you can experience winter sports. An outdoor ice rink will be installed in front of the Gangneung Hockey Centre in Gangneung City. An evening special program―DJ Skate Night―will be held at the same location. It offers an opportunity to enjoy a DJ party with famous DJs in Korea. At Hoengseong Welli Hilli Park in Hoengseong-gun, you can enjoy a speed challenge in front of the halfpipe. Pyeongchang Alpensia Ski Jumping Centre in Pyeongchang-gun offers snow tubing, and a talk concert with Gangwon 2024 ambassadors will also occur. In Jeongseon-gun¡¯s High1 Ski Resort, a photo zone with the Winter Youth Olympic mascot ¡°Moongcho¡± will be set up.

A platform will be provided not only for sports but also for enjoying Korean culture itself. On Jan. 27 at the Pyeongchang Dome and on Jan. 28 at the Kwandong Hockey Center, a K-culture festival will occur. From Jan. 19 to Feb. 1, there will be an exhibition of works by artists with developmental disabilities at the Gangneung Art Center titled ¡°Gangwon 2024¡± and an exhibition of works by art brut artists under the title ¡°Farthest, Highest.¡± Additionally, from Jan. 20 onwards, Korea Arts & Culture Education Service, Korea National Contemporary Dance Company, Korean National Symphony Orchestra, The National Chorus of Korea, Korea National Opera, Korea National University of Arts and Korean National Ballet will host cultural performances. Don¡¯t miss the opportunity to enjoy performances by some of the top artists in Korea.

In particular, through this event, you can meet promising athletes leading the sports industry. In figure skating, there are athletes―Shin Jia and Kim Hyungyeom. Shin Jia won a silver medal at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final, achieving success for two consecutive seasons. Kim Hyungyeom participated in the Youth Olympic Torch Lighting Ceremony held in Athens, Greece, on Oct. 3 and is a promising athlete who achieved a silver medal alongside Shin Jia at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final.

Snowboarders Chaeun Lee and Gaon Choi are showcasing formidable skills. Chaeun Lee Played at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships held in Georgia last March and secured a gold medal in the halfpipe event, performed in a wide, half tube of snow, becoming the first Korean to win a gold medal. Gaon Choi achieved victory in the FIS Snowboard World Cup halfpipe final held in the U.S. in mid-December of last year.

You can also meet the next-generation bobsleigh hopeful So Jae-hwan, who is expected to follow in the footsteps of Yun Sung-bin. In March of this year, he won gold in the Men¡¯s Monobob (individual bobsleigh) category in the 3rd and 4th rounds of the Omega Youth Series, organized by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF).

In speed skating, there is athlete Jung Hui-dan. She demonstrated her prowess by crossing the finish line first in the women¡¯s 500-meter event at the ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating 2nd competition held in Italy last December. The upcoming Winter Olympics is expected to be a venue where spectators and athletes come together―featuring sports players from both domestic and international arenas, including those introduced earlier.