Members of the South Korean delegation to the Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics march into the opening ceremony at Gangneung Oval in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, on Friday. (Yonhap)

The Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games kicked off Friday evening with a grand opening ceremony at the Gangneung Oval, some 160 kilometers east of Seoul, and PyeongChang Dome in Gangwon Province.

A total of 1,802 athletes aged between 15 and 18 from 78 National Olympic Committees, including 102 South Koreans, are taking part in the Fourth Winter Youth Olympic Games, according to the Organizing Committee of the Winter Youth Olympic Games Gangwon 2024. Gangwon 2024 also marks the first Asian host of the quadrennial youth winter sports event, following Innsbruck of Austria, Lillehammer of Norway and Lausanne of Switzerland. Five nations -- Algeria, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates -- will make their Winter Youth Olympics debut. This will be the first Winter Games, youth or adult, for Tunisia.

The participants will be competing in 7 sports including skating, skiing and ice hockey, as well as in 15 disciplines, for 14 days in four cities of Gangwon Province -- PyeongChang, Gangneung, Jeongseon and Hoengseong -- where the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics took place.

The organizing committee will have all competitions open to the public for free, except for the opening ceremony held in Gangneung. However, the Gangwon 2024 Organizing Committee recommends making advance reservations via gangwon2024.com to ensure getting in smoothly.

The organizing committee is also offering various cultural events in the four cities.

President Yoon Suk Yeol (left) and Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, wave to the audience during the opening ceremony for the Winter Youth Olympics held in Gangneung, some 160 kilometers east of Seoul, on Friday. (Yonhap)

Jang Mi-ran, second vice minister of culture, sports and tourism, told reporters last week while checking the venues that the ministry and the organization committee are putting their utmost efforts into providing the best environment for the athletes, despite less attention given to the Youth Olympics compared to the Olympics for adults.

“The upcoming event will welcome young generations from different countries, representing the future of their nations, to compete and immerse themselves in our culture. I hope that not only dedicated youth athletes but all young individuals attend, observe, listen and embrace the values of sports. Witnessing the training methods of youth from diverse nations may provide them with experiences beyond their everyday lives,” Jang said.