The fourth winter youth Olympic Games are set to kick off with an opening ceremony on Friday in South Korea's eastern Gangwon province.
About 1,900
athletes aged 14 to 18 from some 80 countries and regions will compete in four cities of the province throughout Feb. 1 under the slogan of "Grow together. Shine forever."
South Korea became the first host of the winter youth Olympics outside Europe.
The number of young athletes participating in the Winter Olympics hit a record high as Algeria, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates are scheduled to make their winter youth Olympics debut.
A total of 15 disciplines across seven sports will be on display during the two-week sports event.
The majority of the venues from the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games will be used to provide the young athletes with an opportunity to compete in the same sites as Olympians did six years earlier.
