*This content was translated by AI.
Choi Min-jeong (28, Seongnam City Hall) and Kim Ki-li (22, Seongnam City Hall) of the Korean women's short track "Ssangdu Macha" pledged a "gold race."
Lee Soo-kyung, head of the Korean team for the Milan and Cortina D'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, consisting of 45 athletes from ice skating, snowboarding, skeleton, and biathlon, will depart for Milan, Italy, via Incheon International Airport on the afternoon of the 30th.
South Korea will send 130 athletes (71 athletes and 59 executives) in six events to the Winter Olympics. Six more than the previous 65 at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Snowboarding has the largest number of people in each event with 11, followed by short track speed skating with 10 and bobsleigh with 10. There are then eight speed skaters and seven curling and freestyle skis, respectively. There are six figure skaters, three skeleton, alpine skiing, and cross-country skaters, two biathlon, and one luge.
Choi Min-jeong, who met with reporters before leaving the country, said, "I'm excited and nervous to come to the airport," adding, "It's already my third time, so I feel familiar, but as it's an away trip to Europe, the key is to quickly adjust to the time difference and local environment and improve my condition."
"It was embarrassing, but I will do my best to ensure that not only the short track team but also the entire Korean team perform well as the short track team," he said, becoming the captain of the women's team.
Not only the individual event at the Olympics, but also the team event showed extraordinary motivation. Choi Min-jeong said, "Both the mixed event and the women's relay worked hard by communicating with colleagues," adding, "As it is a competition with many records at stake, I will show you what I have prepared without regret."
Kim Ki-li said, "I feel like it's really the Olympics now." When asked what kind of feelings he had between excitement and nervousness, he laughed, saying, "I feel excited now."
Kim Ki-li, who will participate in the Olympics for the first time, said, "It's my first time going through the schedule and the competition, so I don't really know how to fit in yet. But there are things I've been doing, so I'll work it out well," he said.
When asked about the goal of this tournament, he said, "It is to reach all podiums."
Meanwhile, 93 National Olympic Committee (NOC) and 3,500 athletes will participate in the Milan-Cortina D'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, which will open on the 7th and run until the 23rd in Korean time, to compete for a total of 116 gold medals in 8 sports and 16 sub-sports.
South Korea, which ranked 14th overall with two gold medals, five silver medals and two bronze medals in the Beijing Games, aims to win more than three gold medals in this event.
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*This content was translated by AI.
