(FILA Luxembourg S.a.r.L.) FILA-sponsored teams on the ice, for the first time in Asia. Kicking off in January 19 in the Gangwon Province of the Republic of Korea will be the 4th Youth Olympic Games.
The following Fbox teams will take part in the competition :
- Team Italy, sponsored by the Italian Ice Sports Federation (FISG)
- Team Netherlands, sponsored by the Netherlands Olympic Committee (NOC*NSF) and the Dutch Skating Federation (KNSB)
- Team Norway, sponsored by the Norwegian Skating Federation (NSF)
The disciplines involved will be:
- Short track (NED, ITA)
- Speed skating (NED, ITA, NOR)
- Figure skating (ITA)
- Ice Hockey 3x3 (ITA)
- Curling (ITA)
This will be a special occasion for the young FILA athletes, as they’ll be competing on the same ice as the greatest international skaters during the Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang in 2018, which will definitely be an incentive to give their best.
In addition to the Alpensia Biathlon Centre, the Jeongseon ski resort, the Gangneung Hockey and Curling Centre, it will be the ice oval (Ice Arena) in Gangneung that will provide the biggest thrills. There, in 2018, the Dutch flag was hoisted 16 times. Also worth mentioning is the performance of Norway's Sven Kramer, FILA's long-time ambassador, who won his third consecutive gold in the 500 m, as well as a bronze in the team pursuit, thus collecting nine Olympic medals and the gold in the 1,000 m speed skating and bronze in the 3,000 m short track relay by Dutch athlete Jorien Ter Mors.
The Youth Olympic Games, that involve athletes aged 15 to 19, are in their fourth winter edition: they were held in 2012 in Innsbruck, in 2016 in Lillehammer and in 2020 in Lausanne. The institution of the Winter Youth Olympics was created to encourage young people around the world to develop their passion for sport and, at the same time, learn about the Olympic values of excellence, respect and friendship.
Gangwon 2024 will showcase 15 disciplines in 7 different sports: biathlon, bobsleigh (including skeleton), curling, ice hockey, luge, skating (including figure skating, short track and speed skating) and skiing (with alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, freestyle skiing, Nordic combined, ski jumping and snowboarding) with a total of 81 medals at stake. It will be a record edition in terms of the number of participants, increasing from 1,788 to 1,900 athletes compared to Lausanne 2020. To witness those who may be future participants in Milano-Cortina 2026, the games can be followed live on television and in digital streaming on Olympic Channel (Olympics.com) and on the official Olympics app.