[Courtesy of Pyeongchang's Olympic organizing committee]
South Korean football icon Park Ji-sung has been named the first torchbearer for the first Winter Olympics to take place in his native country.
The organizing committee for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games said Wednesday that Park, the former men's national team captain, will carry the torch first after the lighting and handover ceremonies in Ancient Olympia, Greece, on October 24.
Park, 36, was one of South Korea's most iconic football stars until his retirement in 2014. He represented the country at three FIFA World Cups, scoring at least a goal in each of the three tournaments. He won 100 caps for South Korea, one of nine South Koreans in the century club. The former Manchester United midfielder is also the first South Korean to play in the English Premier League.
The torch will tour Greece, the birthplace of the modern Olympics, before arriving in South Korea on Nov. 1, when the countdown to PyeongChang will reach 100 days. The relay will have 7,500 runners cover 2,018 kilometers, a nod to the year in which the Olympics will take place, and travel through nine provinces, eight major cities, and 151 counties.
(Yonhap)
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
