Cancellation of Youth Olympic Cultural Events and Schedule Changes Due to 'Gangwon Heavy Snow'

Heavy Snow Warning Lifted... Snow Expected Until Afternoon of the 21st
Festival Site Schedule Cancellations Continue

The 2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympic Games (Gangwon 2024) are experiencing disruptions, including changes to some schedules due to heavy snowfall.

All That Sports, which operates the Gangwon 2024 festival site 'Play Winter Zone,' announced on the 21st, "The ice one-point lesson by short track skater Lee Jun-seo, scheduled to be held at the outdoor ice rink in front of the Gangneung Hockey Center today, was canceled due to weather and on-site conditions." Lee Jun-seo's one-point lesson was planned to take place for about an hour starting at 11 a.m., but ongoing snow and strong winds in Gangneung made it difficult to proceed.

Short track skater Choi Min-jung was also scheduled to hold a one-point lesson at the same location the previous day, but it was canceled due to continued snow and rain in Gangneung.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The festival site is a concept unique to the Youth Olympics, referring to sports, cultural, and educational programs and youth participation activities held outside the competition venues. Due to the bad weather, activities, stage performances, and DJ skate schedules were also canceled that day.

The schedule for the men's alpine skiing super-G event was changed from noon to 1:30 p.m. that day, and the schedules for outdoor snow sports events were also adjusted, reflecting the ongoing impact of the severe weather.

The organizing committee stated, "Since schedules may change depending on weather conditions, please check the official website frequently."

Although the heavy snow warning issued the previous day has been lifted, snowfall is expected to continue until the afternoon. The Korea Meteorological Administration forecasts 2 to 7 cm of snow in the Yeongdong region by the afternoon. Some parts of Yeongdong are also expected to receive around 5 mm of rain.

From the 18th until 7 a.m. on the day, the accumulated snowfall amounts were: 44 cm in Gangneung Wangsang, 40.5 cm in Sapdallyeong, 38.8 cm in Samcheok Dogye, 32.2 cm in Misiryeong, 25.8 cm in Yangyang Yeongdeok, 23.6 cm in Jochimnyeong, and 22.9 cm in Taebaek. Along the coast, snow accumulation included 15.6 cm in Bukgangneung, 10.2 cm in Gangneung, 7 cm in Yangyang, 5.7 cm in Goseong Ganseong, 5.3 cm in Sokcho Cheongho, 4.4 cm in Sokcho, and 2 cm in Samcheok.

As the snow and rain subsided, Gangwon Province downgraded the disaster safety countermeasures headquarters from 'Emergency Level 2,' which was activated the previous afternoon, to 'Emergency Level 1' at 8 a.m. that day.

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