They may not take home a medal, but the Pyeongchang winter games couldn’t succeed without roughly 20,000 volunteers.
As the games got underway, ۴ý spoke to a handful of young Koreans who were practicing their English while assisting foreign tourists.
The volunteers -- some so young they weren’t born when Korea last the summer games in 1988 -- are proud of their country, despite its challenges.
Consider this: A new high-speed train line whisks people from Incheon airport on the west coast to Pyeongchang in the east of the country, reaching speeds of up to 250 km/h. The train line took just
One young woman who greeted tourists as they alighted from a high-speed train told ۴ý she was from near the capital Seoul, a metropolis of more than It was her first time in the region.
“It’s really small and it’s (the) countryside,” she said of the host city, which has just a population of just 43,000. Does she like it? “Yes! Fresh air.”
One high school student said he was looking at the experience as a last hurrah before beginning his mandatory two years of military service starting Feb. 19.
“That’s why I need to volunteer,” he said.
It’s a reminder that despite a pause in tension between the two warring Koreas to celebrate their athletes, young Koreans face big challenges ahead.
With a report from CTV Chief Anchor Lisa LaFlamme in South Korea