Description
Various issues and concerns arose before and during the 17-day-long sporting event.But before you knew it, we were consumed by the heat of the thrilling competition and dazzling display of skills and Olympic spirit... and it drew to a close.While the general consenus is that Pyongchang games was a huge success, our Lee Ji-won took to the streets to hear directly from those who were closer to the action. From tears of joy, sighs of disappointment to exhilarating excitement. The past 17 days of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics were packed with incident and raw emotions. Now that the event is over, many are looking back at their February in South Korea's alpine town of Pyeongchang and the sub-host city of Gangneung. Many commented on how it was a huge success. "I have been to 16 Olympics, winter and summer, and I thought this was one of the best ones I've been to in terms of organization, logistics, the quality of the infrastructure. You want to be as easy as possible to move around and to enjoy the games."The friendliness of the locals and volunteers was also praised. "We've been really impressed by how nice all the locals have been to us, especially patient, because we don't speak any Korean, and even with the very wide language barrier everyone's been really accommodating." Of the many highlights was North Korea's participation in the Games. While the decision and process was initially controversial, people say these exchanges prove the Olympics is more than just a sporting event. "Not just bold, but I think it's sent a message to the world and there's really only one place that could do that and that is here in South Korea and here in Pyeongchang. A lot of people say that's politics hijacking the games, no actually, this is a not a story about politics, this is a story about people." The bone-chilling temperatures during the Games was a major concern and it caused a number of snow events to be postponed. But journalists who've covered numerous Winter Olympics say cold is not a problem for winter sports. "Olympics are so big, there are always going to be issues. In terms of the weather, it was very cold the first week, but in a way, this is the Winter Olympics, they are supposed to be cold."Visitors also suggested room for improvements. "I think they should've taught English to most of the work force because I don't speak Korean and as a foreigner it was hard for me to get information." "It wasn't that expensive to book a place to stay, but I came here to watch numerous events on different days... and there weren't many vacancies."With the general consensus that the PyeongChang Olympics were a success, many visitors said one of the best legacies of the Games is that South Korea "took a step forward in presenting itself" to the world and the world got to know Korea better as well.Lee Ji-won, Arirang News, Pyeongchang.