International Olympic Committee

18 January 2024 – The stage for the Winter Youth Olympic Games (YOG) Gangwon 2024 is set: the athletes have arrived, the Youth Olympic Village is operating at full capacity, and the venues are ready for the competitions. This was emphasised by the Gangwon 2024 Organising Committee (YOGOC) during its report to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board (EB) on the eve of the Games in Gangneung, Republic of Korea. The EB applauded the efforts made. The Games will start tomorrow night (19 January) with the Opening Ceremony.

Coordination Commission Chair and IOC Member Hong Zhang said: “Six years after the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, the venues from those Games are not just a great legacy but also the perfect backdrop for all participating athletes.” Of the nine venues being used for Gangwon 2024, seven were also used during the Olympic Winter Games 2018.

Zhang continued: “Thanks to the great collaboration throughout the preparation, we look forward to an exciting Opening Ceremony tomorrow, where Korea and young people will take to the main stage.”

Kim Chul-min, Secretary General of the Gangwon 2024 YOGOC, said: “It is a great honour that we celebrate today the progress made here in Gangwon – a testament to the Youth Olympic Games’ commitment to engaging youth worldwide. Gangwon 2024 is a great platform for young people to share their passion and dreams, create opportunities, and learn from each other.”

Ticketing

Following the launch of the ticketing platform in November 2023, it was announced that 320,000 tickets have now been reserved for events at Gangwon 2024, with organisers continuing their efforts to promote the YOG to people in the four host cities.

Athlete Education Programme

The IOC EB was updated on the Athlete Education Programme, which will be based at Athlete365 House in the Youth Olympic Village throughout the YOG. In total, it features nine programmes centred around four main themes: integrity, well-being, digital media and career support. Athletes can also play the interactive PinQuest game while learning about key IOC topics, and exchange points for exclusive prizes.

Local engagement

The IOC EB also heard an update on the youth engagement that will be taking place across the four host cities, with the theme “Play Winter”. In order to provide a rich experience in terms of sport, culture and education for spectators, there are festival sites in each host city, featuring sports initiation activities, tubing, concerts and inspirational talks from Olympians.