Remarks by President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea at PyeongChang 2018 at the Met: Celebrating the Olympic Winter

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, 

Autumn in Central Park is really beautiful. I am very pleased to meet you all at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on this lovely autumn night when the leaves are tinged with red and gold. Even though I am President by profession, it would suit me better tonight to be introduced as an honorary ambassador for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. 

Distinguished guests, 

How did you find the winter landscape of PyeongChang you just saw? What about those young people dancing and singing harmoniously in a mixture of East and West as well as the traditional and modern? Weren’t they so beautiful and attractive? 

If you agree with me, please send them a big round of applause. 

Now we are 142 days away from the Olympics. Expectations are rising. In 142 days, we will meet the most passionate and creative minds. I invite you to PyeongChang in the Republic of Korea in February 2018. 

You would see how ideal PyeongChang is as host of the winter Olympics when considering its name. PyeongChang is the combination of two syllables “Pyeong” meaning peace and “Chang” meaning prosperity. Don’t you think its name truly dovetails with the Olympic spirit of harmony and peace? 

More than anything else, I want to proudly tell you about the beautiful scenery and lovely people of PyeongChang. 

PyeongChang is the place where the sun rises first on the Asian continent. It resembles the snowfields of northern Europe and the verdant grasslands of Central Asia. It is also the place where you can take in the most magnificent landscape in Korea, the East Sea and Seorak Mountain, at the same time. 

Moreover, there are open, friendly people there who know how to enjoy festivals. The Gangneung Danoje Festival, a local traditional festival in Korea, has been registered by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity and lasts for as long as a month with people singing, dancing and competing together. 

Ladies and gentlemen, 

Don’t you want to see and meet them? Why don’t you begin your 2018 in PyeongChang, a land covered with snow on the easternmost point of the Eurasian continent? Don’t you feel excited when you think about it? 

Distinguished guests, 

The PyeongChang Winter Olympics is a significant Olympic event that will be held in Korea 30 years after the 1988 Summer Olympics hosted by Seoul. The Korean Government and people are preparing for the Olympics with an extraordinary mind. 

Preparations are also underway in an impeccable manner. Last month, Chair of the IOC Coordination Commission Gunilla Lindberg checked the progress of the preparations and gave them high marks with a comment that PyeongChang was ready to welcome the world to the Olympic Winter Games. 

There is no need to worry about the safety during the Olympics. I suppose no one here has ever heard that people in Korea were gripped with fear about terrorism. Yes, that is true. Korea is one of the safest countries in the world. 

 Moreover, Korea has a successful track record in hosting numerous large-scale international events safely from the 1988 Seoul Summer Olympics during the Cold War and the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan to the 2003 Summer Universiade, the G20 Summit in 2010 and the 2011 World Championships in Athletics. 

The PyeongChang Winter Olympics will be exemplary in all respects, including in safety and operation.  

With this much preparation, I am sure that the PyeongChang Olympics will be a success. I am confident you all agree with me.   

We have yet another reason to be optimistic. And it is our surest reason: our people. 

All of you likely saw the enthusiastic cheering of the red-clad South Korean soccer fans, or “Red Devils” as they were called, who filled the streets during the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan. You likely saw the candlelight protests last winter as well. For half a year, some 17 million people took to the streets, but we saw not one injury or arrest. It was truly a festival of peace. 

The Korean people have an extraordinary capacity for cohesiveness and passion, not to mention mature democratic citizenship. They are the reason I am convinced that the PyeongChang Olympics is bound to be a success. 

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, 

PyeongChang is ready to present you with a very special Olympics. Wouldn’t you be excited to see a cutting-edge robot carrying the Olympic torch? You would also have the chance to ride in various types of self-driving vehicles, including buses, passenger cars  and SUVs, all operated by artificial intelligence. These cars will run between different competition venues as well as between PyeongChang and Gangneung. 

Come to PyeongChang! 

Come and see a state-of-the-art information and communications technology-based Olympics like the world has never seen before. Come to experience the world's first 5G mobile communications test network. And come for an incredible experience of the world’s first terrestrial ultra high-definition and ultra wide-vision broadcasts. 

Preparations are being made to ensure that the upcoming Winter Olympics is the most accessible yet. From the main stadium in the center, all other venues can be reached within 30 minutes. Pyeongchang will also be just a little more than an hour’s travel from both the Incheon International Airport and Seoul. 

As a best-in-class cultural Olympics featuring daily events and festivals, the PyeongChang Olympics will be a delight for your eyes and ears. You will be able to immerse yourself fully in Hallyu and K-pop, trends sweeping the world today. 

I have a story I would like to share with all of you. 

It is a story about a 19 year-old Taiwanese teenager, Tsao Chih-i. Tsao Chih-i fell in love with figure skating after experiencing his first real winter at the age of 10 in PyeongChang. 

Today, he is a rising star, ranked 13th in the world. He says PyeongChang was a turning point in his life. 

PyeongChang has invited young people from countries where it is difficult to experience winter sports as part of the Dream Program. Stories like Tsao Chih-i's are a testament to the program's success.  

Some 1,500 young people from 75 countries, including Syria suffering from the pain of a civil war, have shared friendship with each other on the snowy fields of PyeongChang. One hundred young people with disabilities have seen and touched snow for the first time and enjoyed winter weather. 

I believe that this precious program should remain as a legacy of PyeongChang and continue as a tradition of the Winter Olympics. Do you all agree? 

Distinguished guests from around the world, 

The Republic of Korea and PyeongChang are going to embark on a difficult but meaningful challenge. That is to achieve a peace Olympic with North Korea participating in it. 

Tensions are high now but because of that, peace is all the more needed. If the two Koreas come together at this point in time, it will become a great opportunity to send a message of reconciliation and peace to the world. 

I do not think it is impossible. So far, the two Koreas have had several experiences of coming together. 

Even this year, North Korea has taken part in two sporting events held in South Korea: women’s ice hockey and taekwondo competitions. Its participation in the taekwondo event took place just three months ago. 

There have been various forms of sports exchanges between the two Koreas so far, including the formation of a single inter-Korean team, South and North Korean athletes marching together during an opening ceremony and the North Korean cheering squad taking part in South Korean events. 

We will make endeavors with patience till the end along with the International Olympic Committee. It is not an easy path but is one that the Republic of Korea must take. I ask for a lot of interest and support from all peace-loving citizens around the world. 

Distinguished guests, 

Do you know PyeongChang and New York have a special relationship? 

In 2011, PyeongChang eagerly embarked on a challenge for its third bid to host the Winter Olympics. In May that year, a Grand Chorus Celebration was held and broadcast live at the same time in Seoul, PyeongChang and New York, resonating around the world. PyeongChang won the bid for the Winter Olympics in its third attempt. It was the result of the joint passion of Seoul and New York. 

Ladies and gentlemen, 

I expect our meeting today will bring more good luck to PyeongChang. Do you all agree? 

Please, give a lot of support to PyeongChang. Your interest and support will make the PyeongChang Winter Olympics successful. I ask all of you here to personally visit PyeongChang and complete the Peace Olympics, the PyeongChang Olympics. 

Distinguished guests, 

I hope you will enjoy the performance a little later by Sumi Jo, a world-renowned soprano from Korea whom we love to boast about. Please remember this great party today.  

Ladies and gentlemen, 

I invite you all to the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Let us meet in PyeongChang on February 9, next year. 

Thank you very much.