Wednesday, January 24, 2024
On Sunday, the Gangwon Province, known for its mountainous terrain, experienced a heavy snowfall that affected the ongoing Winter Youth Olympics, causing disruptions in outdoor sports and planned ancillary events.
In Seoul, the capital city, authorities announced a cold wave alert starting at 9 p.m. Sunday, anticipating a marked drop in temperatures over Monday and Tuesday.
The Youth Olympics’ official website indicated adjustments in the schedule due to weather conditions. The men’s super-G final in Alpine skiing, initially set for 1:30 p.m. Sunday in Jeongseon, was postponed to 2 p.m. owing to adverse snow and wind conditions. The website advised regular updates on the event schedule to account for potential further changes.
Despite these disruptions, all indoor events such as men’s luge singles, women’s luge doubles, and most outdoor events like the biathlon single mixed relay and women’s super-G Alpine skiing took place as planned.
The international event, welcoming athletes aged 15-18 from across the globe, began on Friday in Gangwon Province and is set to continue until February 1. Over 1,800 athletes are participating in this competition.
Outdoor side events, however, were impacted by the inclement weather.
A short track speed skating lesson by Lee June-seo, scheduled for 11 a.m. at Gangneung Olympic Park, was canceled. This was reported by All That Sports, a South Korean sports marketing agency, which also manages the Play Winter Zone at five festival sites with interactive activities alongside the Youth Games.
According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, as of 7 a.m. Sunday, Gangneung had seen around 44 centimeters of snow accumulation since Thursday, with Samcheok and Yangyang recording 38.8 cm and 25.8 cm, respectively.
By 8 a.m. Sunday, the provincial government reduced its emergency response from Level 2 to Level 1, as the severity of the rain and snow decreased.
To clear snow from the roads and ensure smooth traffic, the province deployed 212 machines, 303 workers, and 4,000 tons of deicer on Sunday. Since the onset of the snowfall, a total of 953 snow-clearing machines, 12,237 personnel, and 6,000 tons of deicer have been utilized.
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