By the Numbers: Korea Olympics to have 7,500 Torch Bearers to Unite the North & South

There are not many organized events that command worldwide attention and bring tens of thousands of excited people from all over the world in one place, and the Winter Olympics is certainly one of them. Since its inception in 1924 in Chamonix, France, the Olympic Winter Games (official name) has evolved in many ways to become the global phenomenon that showcases the ultimate human strength, resilience, spirit. Much of this is measured in statistics and records throughout the competition – here, we look at the upcoming Pyeongchang Olympics in numbers.

3 – Number of tries it took Korea to host the Winter Olympics. The previous two times were awarded to Vancouver (2010) and Sochi (2014). Also, Korea is the 3rd Asian city to host the event, after Sapporo and Nagano (both in Japan). 8 – Korea will become the 8th nation in the world to have hosted both the Summer and Winter Olympics. The other seven are: USA, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Russia, and Japan. 51 – Number of trains leaving daily from ICN and Seoul to the Olympics sites 58 – Minutes it will take to get from Seoul to Pyeongchang by the new high-speed rail! 101 – Number of days the Olympic torch will be traveling through Korea. It will arrive in Incheon from Greece, and pass through over 70 cities before arriving in Pyeongchang on Feb 9th for the opening ceremony. 102 – Athletes from around the world will be competing for 102 medals, the most ever in Winter Olympics history. The previous record of 98 medals was held by Sochi Olympics, and 4 events have been added this time: Big Air (snowboard), Mass Start (marathon speed skating), Curling (mixed doubles), and Alpine Skiing (coed team). More on these events here. 120 – Total distance in kilometer of the brand new high-speed rail being built as part of the Olympics KTX train to connect Incheon airport to the event sites (Pyeongchang station, Jinbu station, and Gangneung station). 278 – Total length in kilometer of the entire high-speed line from Incheon airport to Gangneung, the coastal region by the East Sea where half of the Olympics events will take place! 2018 – The torch relay will last a total of 2018km. It will be transported through various methods such as steam engine train, zip wire, yacht in Busan, and rail bike, to showcase the different means of transportation and leisure activities in Korea. 7,500 – Total number of torch bearers, chosen in relation to the total population of 75,000,000 in North and South Korea if the two nations were to be united. 56,000 – estimated number of spectators who will be attending the events each day! Don’t miss out on this amazing event, especially if you are in Korea! With the new KTX line, staying in Seoul and enjoying the nightlife will be easier than ever. If you plan on going to the games, make sure to get your tickets and accommodations now. Wonderful can help with tickets, transportation, hotels, flights and local activities for a customized experience tailored for making Olympic dreams come true. As your personal assistant, we give you access to Korea like a local. www.gowonderfully.com