[2024 Gangwon] Choi Gaon and Lee Chaewoon Soar, Shin Jiah and Kim Hyunkyum Shine with Golden Spins

Choi Gaon Wins Gold in Women's Halfpipe at Last Month's FIS World Cup
Lee Chaewoon Becomes Youngest Male Halfpipe Champion Ever
Figure Skating's Next-Gen Star Shin Jia Sweeps Domestic and International Competitions
Kim Hyunkyum Achieves Best Ever Male Result at ISU Junior Competition

The 2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympic Games is an opportunity to discover new domestic prospects. Youth athletes (ages 15 to 18) compete against their peers to develop their dreams. Some are already considered close to medal-winning level, comparable to adult athletes.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Choi Gaon (Sehwa Middle School), a snowboarder who performs spins and jumps on a halfpipe slope, is a prime example. Last month, she won the gold medal at the International Ski Federation (FIS) World Cup women's halfpipe final with a score of 92.75. She became the second Korean athlete to win an FIS World Cup across all disciplines. She started snowboarding at age seven and achieved this success within seven years. She won the FIS Junior World Championships in March 2022 and drew attention last January by becoming the youngest (14 years and 3 months) champion at the X Games SuperPipe in the U.S. extreme sports competition.

She is also a strong favorite to win at the Gangwon Winter Youth Olympic Games. A technique to watch is the switch back nine, where the rider takes off in the opposite direction of travel and spins two and a half times in the air. She was the only female athlete to perform this move at the last World Cup. Choi explained, "I prepared new techniques during the off-season and improved the skill’s completeness by training a lot on air mats in Japan." She added, "I am also practicing the switch back ten, which spins half a turn more," and said, "Winning the World Cup has given me a bit more confidence."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Lee Chaewoon (Surigo), who set the record as the youngest (16 years old) male champion at the FIS Snowboard World Championships last March, is also noteworthy. He won a silver medal at last month’s FIS World Cup with dazzling techniques, including consecutive 1440-degree spins. He stated, "I will raise the difficulty and perfection of my skills to show a good performance not only at the Gangwon Winter Youth Olympic Games but also at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics."

In figure skating, Shin Jia (Yeongdong Middle School) and Kim Hyungyeom (Hankwang High School) are the next-generation stars. Since the 2022-2023 season, Shin has swept medals at various domestic and international competitions. These include two ISU Junior Grand Prix events (gold and silver medals), the Junior Grand Prix Final (silver medal), which is considered the championship of champions, and the Junior World Championships (silver medal).

This season, she scored over 200 points in both Junior Grand Prix events, ranking first and securing a spot in the Junior Grand Prix Final. She also outperformed senior top athletes such as Lee Haein (Sehwa High School), Kim Yerim (Dankook University), and Yoo Young (Brion Company) in the first national team selection for 2024-2025. However, the ISU raised the minimum age for senior international figure skating competitions, so she cannot compete at the senior level until before the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics. Shin said, "It’s very disappointing, but I will focus on improving my skills until I move up to the senior level."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Kim Hyungyeom is a promising athlete who achieved the best-ever result for a Korean male skater by winning silver at last month’s ISU Junior Grand Prix Final. He has made remarkable progress by improving the execution of quadruple jumps (4 rotations) and triple axels (3 and a half rotations) last year. The Gangwon Winter Youth Olympic Games is expected to be a stage for his redemption. There is a high possibility he will face Japan’s Nakata Rio, the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final champion, again. Since he fell attempting the quadruple toe loop, the first jump in the free skate, and lost the lead, he is concentrating on reducing mistakes.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Additionally, bobsledder So Jaehwan (Sangji Daegwallyeong High School), who competed eight times in the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) Youth Series this season and won five gold and three silver medals; Kim Hyewon (Muju High School), who became the first to win four titles in biathlon at last February’s Winter Sports Festival; Kim Yerim (Sangji Daegwallyeong High School), the youngest member of the current skeleton national team; and Kim Soyoon (Shinmyeong Girls’ High School), who participated as the youngest athlete in the 2022-2023 national team selection and earned the Taegeuk mark in luge singles, are all considered medal contenders.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.