By Kim Hyelin and Charles Auduoin

The Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics (Gangwon 2024) in Gangwon-do Province, which is just one day away, will feature some of the world's best young competitors in snow and ice sports.

What many might not consider is that quite a few national teams represent countries with no snow or ice. Athletes from such regions received training for this competition from the New Horizons Academy.

Hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Gangwon-do State, the province's government, and supervised by the PyeongChang 2018 Legacy Foundation, the academy invites youth from countries whose climates prevent development of and participation in winter sports to train them for Gangwon 2024. 

New Horizons held three rounds of training for youth from these countries in Pyeongchang-gun County and Gangneung of Gangwon-do in 2022 and last year.

In June 2022, the athletes tried leading winter sports in the first session. The second in December that year and July last year had them undergo advanced training in the events they selected. Apart from this, they attended lectures given by mentors and experienced facets of Korean culture through classes on taekwondo and K-pop dance.

For two years, selected participants trained through the academy and competed in international youth winter sports competitions in countries such as Korea, Norway, the U.S. and Austria to hone their skills for Gangwon 2024.

The following are excerpts from Korea.net's interviews from Jan. 15-16 with athletes from Colombia, Tunisia and Thailand in Gangneung on their preparation for the tournament.

How did you get involved with the New Horizons Academy?

Sophie Ghorbal (Tunisia): I've always liked sports, and most of all, I participated in this because I wanted to gain new experiences. The chance to compete at Gangwon 2024 was also alluring.

Isabela Caicedo (Colombia): Sebastian Uprimny, who competed at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, introduced me to this program. I began short track skating two years ago and knew that Korea is a world power in this sport, so I thought this program would be very useful.

What do you like most about the academy?

Kitthamet Palakai (Thailand): I liked meeting and interacting with youth from a wide range of cultures. Befriending athletes from countries whom I couldn't easily interact with such as those from Slovakia, China, Sudan, Tunisia, Denmark, France, Romania and Jamaica was truly a special experience.

Caicedo: My goal was to improve my technical skills, and I liked being able to accomplish it. Many of the Korean coaches in the program were skilled Olympians who provided effective and dedicated guidance to us. What I learned from them greatly helped me qualify for Gangwon 2024.

What are your goals for Gangwon 2024?

Ponchanan Pongsak (Thailand): My desire is to win a medal but more importantly, I want to pass the finish line without any mistakes.

Tomas Palmezano (Colombia): Just getting here is both a great challenge and achievement. Because of my short training time, I want to finish the tournament without a mistake above all. That would be an experience of conquering myself.

What should viewers look for in your respective events?

Agnese Campeol (Thailand): Bobsleigh is a sport similar to riding down ice on a Ferrari. You can enjoy the event if you focus on the sense of speed.

Caicedo: Focus on a competitor's control when watching speed skating. It might seem like a sport of smoothly flowing across ice, but the athletes exert tremendous strength to delicately control their speed and direction.

Beya Mokrani (Tunisia): The start of bobsleigh is impressive. Pay attention to how the pilot pushes the sled weighing over 200 kg and explodes with speed afterwards.

What are your plans after the tournament?

Caicedo: My short-term goal is to compete in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan (Italy), and my long-term goal is becoming an Olympic champion in both short and long track.

Ghorbal: We tried bobsleigh for the experience but it's now our passion. We hope to get noticed as the first Tunisian athletes to compete at a Youth Winter Olympics and gain sponsors and coaches who support us.

What message do you have for youth who will watch Gangwon 2024?

Ghorbal: If I was told two years ago that I'd be competing at this Winter Youth Olympics, I would've never believed it. Thanks to the PyeongChang 2018 Legacy Foundation, we've gained unique and happy memories, experiences and friendships. I definitely recommend this program to any interested youth.

Caicedo: I want to tell my fellow youth to ignore anyone who tells them "You can't do it." Nothing is set in stone. Our future remains a blank slate, and we have in our hands the pencils to write our own stories. I hope that everyone bravely writes their stories.

kimhyelin211@korea.kr