Winter Olympics: Athletes' villages ready to greet visitors

 The inside of an accommodation for athletes at the PyeongChang Village in PyeongChang, 180 kilometers east of Seoul (Photo: english.yonhapnews.co.kr)

Pyeongchang (VNA/Yonhap) -- With the PyeongChang Winter Olympics just around the corner, organizers said on January 25 that the two athletes' villages are ready to greet participants, with visitors expected to start moving in this week, Yonhap news agency of the Republic of Korea (RoK) reported.

While official welcoming ceremonies will start on Feb. 1, advance teams from different countries will move to the villages starting January 26, the PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games said.

The RoK prepared two villages for the 2018 Winter Games, with the PyeongChang Village serving athletes performing at snow events in the host town of PyeongChang, located 180 kilometers east of Seoul, and nearby Jeongseon.

Athletes performing in ice events such as hockey and skating will be accommodated in the Gangneung Olympic Village, east of PyeongChang.

The PyeongChang Village has eight 15-story buildings, which amounts to 600 units. The Gangneung counterpart has nine 25-story buildings, or 922 units.

The villages will have various facilities for athletes, including banks, post offices, convenience stores, laundry rooms, gyms and religious centers.

The committee is also planning to host various cultural events, including dance performances, to entertain athletes during their stay.

The organizing committee added that athletes are allowed to take the blankets in their rooms back home as gifts. The special blankets are inscribed with pictograms of different winter sports.

"We have prepared 3,300 blankets for the PyeongChang Village, and 2,600 for the Gangneung Village," an official from the committee said, adding that each costs around 70,000 won (65.8 USD).-VNA/Yonhap