[Editorial] Pyeongchang Olympics sends powerful message of peace

South and North Korean athletes enter the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium together at the closing ceremonies on Feb. 25. (Photo Pool)

The extinguishing of the flame at Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium in Gangwon Province on the evening of Feb. 25 brought an end to the 17-day-long Olympic festival. With 2,920 athletes from 92 countries showing their capabilities to the fullest, the Winter Olympics were a dramatic spectacle that eloquently showed the oneness humankind can achieve through sports. With the success of its second Olympic Games three decades after the 1988 Seoul Olympics, South Korea has started another journey toward a higher plateau.

The closing ceremony performance, which adopted the theme of “The Next Wave,” was a fantastic spectacle combining K-Pop with a live drone show and traditional music. For all the sadness of seeing the flame go out in the stadium and colorful lights once again emblazoning the night sky, there was also a sense of hope and the promise of a new beginning.

Perhaps the highlight of the Olympics was the image of South and North Korean athletes freely entering once again at the closing ceremony, holding the South and North Korean flags and the Korean Peninsula flag after their previous joint entrance at the opening ceremony. Before the event, some had voiced concerns about the somewhat rushed decision to field a unified team and have the athletes enter together. The end result, however, showed that South and North do indeed remain one nation.

The unified women’s ice hockey team may not have come away victorious, but their steady progress left a deep impression beyond its athletic significance. This was clearly illustrated by the results of a Gallup Korea poll ahead of the closing ceremony: in contrast with the opening ceremony, most of the respondents now supported the unified team. Staged in a small city in a divided country, the Pyeongchang Olympics sent a more powerful message of peace than any Olympics before.

We send our congratulations and support to the athletes from all over the world who competed their hardest over the past 17 days. We tip our hats in particular to the athletes on the South Korean team for their energy and hard work. In sports, we can only content ourselves with trying our best in fair competition, without fussing too much over the results. It is not the medal count or colors that matter; what we applaud are the sweat and tears committed to sport.

At the close of this Olympics, we send our warmest applause to all of the South Korean athletes, from those who emerged as “national heroes” through the Olympics to the unknowns competing in obscure and unpopular events. Our thanks also go out to the volunteers and everyone else who dedicated themselves day and night to the Pyeongchang Olympics’ success.

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