The initiative is unprecedented. It speaks volumes about the attention paid by South Korea – and the means devoted – to prolonging the legacy of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Games.
Opened in May 2019 at the request of the authorities of the country and the province of Gangwon, the PyeongChang 2018 Legacy Foundation last year invited nearly a hundred young African athletes to discover and learn about introduce yourself to winter sports. With the ambition to offer them a chance to participate in the Gangwon 2024 Youth Winter Games (January 19 to February 1).
President of the Tunisian Ice Hockey Association, Ihab Ayed accompanied his country's delegation throughout the adventure. Exactly one year before the opening of the 2024 Winter YOG in Gangwon, he told FrancsJeux an experience that could forever change the Olympic future of many African countries, where the Winter Games have always been perceived as a distant and inaccessible event.
FrancsJeux : What was the starting point of this initiative to detect young African talents for the 2024 Winter Youth Games in Gangwon?
Ihab Ayed : The idea came from South Korea. It is part of the legacy approach of the PyeongChang Winter Games in 2018. The PyeongChang Foundation has entered into a partnership agreement with the Association of African National Olympic Committees (ACNOA). A call was then launched by ANOCA to all national Olympic committees on the continent, to identify young people with an interest in winter sports or a minimum of practice. The Tunisian NOC contacted me, in my capacity as president of the National Ice Hockey Association, the only entity in the country dedicated to winter sports. I alerted my acquaintances, I used social networks. I ended up identifying eight young Tunisians, born between 2006 and 2009, to respond to South Korea's request.
What follow-up was given to the operation?
It was very concrete and perfectly organized. We were invited by the Foundation to a two-week summer internship in PyeongChang, from May 28 to June 13, 2022. It brought together more than 80 young Africans, from many countries, such as Algeria, Ethiopia, Sudan, Lesotho, Sierra Leone and South Africa. A very intensive course, where the South Koreans subjected all the young people to physical tests, at the start and end of their stay, to assess progress. They offered us a program to discover winter sports in a summer version – bobsleigh, alpine skiing, luge, roller cross-country skiing… The sessions were sometimes very specific, led by the national coaches of the South Korean federations concerned. The evenings were devoted to more cultural activities, a discovery of South Korea, doping education sessions, and competition management.
How was the program funded?
South Korea covered the entire cost. For the African NOCs, everything was completely free, including travel and transfers. We were staying at the athletes' village for the PyeongChang 2018 Games.
Was the experiment continued in more wintery conditions, on snow and ice?
In September, the Koreans communicated to ANOCA a list of around forty young people selected to continue the adventure. For Tunisia, we went from eight trainees to four: a girl and a boy in bobsleigh, a girl in skeleton and a boy in alpine skiing. This narrow selection was invited to a second grouping of around ten days in PyeongChang, at the end of last December. Also invited were countries not present at the first gathering, such as Comoros, Uganda, Cape Verde and eSwatini (formerly Swaziland). This time, the program was intended to be more specific, with each of the young people having to concentrate on their single sport, with supervision still provided by the coaches of the South Korean Olympic team.
Will all the selected young Africans participate in the Winter YOG next year in Gangwon?
Not necessarily. They will have to, like young athletes in the rest of the world, get their selection. It will involve participation in international competitions, to earn points and obtain quotas. South Korea does not decide on participation in the YOG 2024, it is the responsibility of the international federations. But his initiative gives chances to countries without snow and to athletes who have until now been very far from winter sports. But it is also the reason for the Youth Games.
Is Tunisia's participation in the 2024 YOG in Gangwon realistic today?
Of course. But, as the country currently has no national federation in winter sports, the road to Gangwon 2024 involves an affiliation of the Tunisian Olympic committee to international bodies, the FIS for alpine skiing, the IBSF for bobsleigh and the skeleton. The process must be initiated and validated as quickly as possible.
What role did ANOCA play in South Korea’s initiative?
A driving role. Mustapha Berraf, the president of ANOCA, negotiated the project and its conditions with the PyeongChang Foundation, then signed the cooperation agreement. The body then encouraged the NOCs to respond to the invitation. A representative of the association, the South African Ezera Tshabangu, was present throughout the course. ANOCA ensured real monitoring and promotion of the project, with the desire to see as many young Africans as possible at the 2024 YOG.
