As Gangwon 2024 Youth Olympic Games are in full swing, what is the main message these Games convey to the Youth of the world?

I would like to convey the message that we should grow together and prepare for a shining tomorrow through sports, just like the slogan of Gangwon 2024, ‘Grow Together, Shine Forever’.
For the athletes, this will not only be a great opportunity to assess their potential in the competition alongside their fellow peers but will also be an opportunity to find out what they need to improve their skills. Moreover, I believe that spectators, youth in particular, will embrace Olympic values as they witness their peers challenging themselves and transcending limitations on the global stage.

The Gangwon Games are reusing most of the PyeongChang 2018 infrastructure and facilities. What are the main axes of the Gangwon 2024 YOG sustainability commitments?

While preparing for Gangwon 2024, our focus has been on achieving a sustainable Olympics and imparting a message for future generations throughout the entire project.
The significance of the Gangwon 2024 Games lies in their utilization of most of the facilities from PyeongChang 2018. This allows young athletes from around the world to realize their dreams on the same stage where top athletes competed six years ago. Moreover, this approach simultaneously contributes to the sustainability of venues and the environment.
Gangwon 2024 is pioneering innovation with the unveiling of the world’s first digital cauldron, replacing the traditional gas-fueled counterpart used during the Games. This initiative underscores our commitment to environmental preservation and sustainability for future generations.
Throughout the preparation phase, the organizing committee has prioritized environmental considerations for the future. This includes initiatives such as opting for reusable cups over disposable ones to encourage resource circulation, minimizing paper usage by transitioning to electronic documents, and actively engaging in environmental initiatives such as ‘tree planting’ events with local youth in the host city. These efforts collectively exert a positive influence on the environment in various ways.
The organizing committee’s sustainable Olympics model can serve as a comparison indicator for future editions of the Games through carbon footprint measurement and result analysis after the Games.

The Youth Olympic Games are an extraordinary “lab” to experiment with innovation related to sport and sport related issues. In Gangwon, a special metaverse has been created to increase fan mobilisation not only locally, but also worldwide. Can you explain this new tool and the related experience?

The Gangwon 2024 Metaverse, also known as Virtual Gangwon, stands as the leading Olympic metaverse platform, presenting unparalleled opportunities for future generations to engage in the Olympic Movement and immerse themselves in its essence. This innovative platform is poised to ignite interest and foster increased participation in the Olympics among new generations.
Virtual Gangwon offers a unique experience, allowing users to explore Olympic stadiums and tourist attractions in the virtual world. The platform boasts a total of nine facilitities, including seven competition venues and two athletes’ villages. Users navigate these venues using customizable avatars, expressing themselves through various features such as facial expressions, hair styles, skin color, clothing, and accessories.
In addition to exploration, users can engage in communication with other users via chat, with automatic translation based on their chosen language settings. They can also take part in mini games like ski jumping and bobsleigh, with real-time transmission of game records and the option to compete by country. While competition games are broadcast in real-time on large monitors within the venues, these broadcasts are exclusively available to domestic users, in compliance with IOC regulations.
The Virtual Gangwon Metaverse project was developed and is operated with the support of the IOC, Gangwon Province, and the Ministry of Science and ICT.

What will remain of the YOG on the morning of February 2, 2024, both physically (in terms of tangible legacy) and virtually (in terms of intangible legacy)?

After the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, the 2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics became a significant Olympic legacy by embodying the Olympic values. Notably, it marked a historic milestone as the first Winter Youth Olympic Games held in Asia and set a historical milestone with the largest number of athlete participation. Undoubtedly, its significance runs deep in our country’s Olympic history.
Gangwon 2024 demonstrated the possibility of a sustainable Olympics through the utilization of existing Olympic facilities for the Games. It will become another Olympics that leaves behind the greatest values of the Olympics – friendship, solidarity, and harmony – for everyone who participated in the Games.
During the Gangwon 2024 Games, we have witnessed the legacy of Pyeongchang 2018 come to fruition, with evidence of the expanded base of winter sports through initiatives like the 2018 Pyeongchang Legacy Foundation’s ‘Dream Program’ and ‘New Horizons Academy’.
Our legacy is to ‘Grow Together’ through Gangwon 2024, and ‘Shine Forever’ in the Olympic history, under the ‘New Horizon’ opened by Pyeongchang 2018. That is the ultimate legacy of Gangwon 2024. I believe that Gangwon 2024 will open a new chapter in the history of the Olympics.