The 2018 Winter Olympics are set from Feb. 9-25, 2018. The city chosen to host the games is Pyeongchang, South Korea, which is only 60 miles south of the border that separates North and South Korea.
This year, both the North and South Koreans will march under a united flag during the opening ceremonies and athletes from both of the countries will play together in a few events. On Feb. 7, Kim Jong Un’s youngest sister, Kim Yo-Jong, left for South Korea. She is the first immediate member of North Korea’s ruling family to step foot in the South. This is a big step for the North and South Koreans toward peace and friendly diplomatic relations.
This will be the second time South Korea has hosted the Olympics. In 1988, Seoul hosted the Summer Olympics. This year, the opening and closing ceremonies will take place in the PyeongChang Olympic Stadium, a temporary structure that has the capacity to hold 50,000 spectators.
There are 92 countries participating. The United States has athletes participating in 102 events within 15 different sports. Some sports include alpine skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, snowboarding. Team USA is ready to take the lead in the Olympics this year, and their athletes are poised for another triumphant Olympic Games.
The United States has a few stand-out athletes to watch for in the 2018 games:
Mikaela Shiffrin, reigning gold medalist and world champion alpine skier, is determined to medal again this year.
Nathan Chan is the first U.S. male figure skater in eight years to win the ISU Grand Prix Final. As the 2017 Four Continents Champion and the U.S. Champion, Chan has excited U.S. fans who are hoping for a men’s singles win this year.
Maame Biney made history in December as the first black woman to qualify for the short track speed skating U.S. Olympics Team. She won a bronze medal at the 2016-17 Short Track Junior World Championships, but this will be her first Winter Olympics.
Another anticipated Team USA athlete is Chloe Kim, a seventeen-year-old snowboarder. In the past, she has been referred to as “The Future of Women’s Snowboarding,” and she is determined to win many events in the 2018 Winter Olympics, as she couldn’t attend the 2014 Sochi Olympics due to age restrictions. She is a fierce competitor who wants to keep up her reputation after being the first female to score a perfect 100 and the only athlete in X Games History to earn three gold medals before the age of 16.
Team USA is ready for this year’s Winter Olympics, and everyone is aiming for a friendly, peaceful international sports competition.
