Lily Cooke and Finlay Wilson named as the Team Ireland Flagbearers for the Winter Youth Olympic Games in Gangwon 2024
The Team Ireland’s flagbearers for the Winter Youth Olympic Games in Gangwon have been named. Alpine Skier Finlay Wilson and Luge athlete Lily Cooke will lead the Irish team into the Gangneung Oval at 11 am Irish time. The live stream of the ceremony can be found HERE and takes place simultaneously in the Gangneung Oval and the Pyeongchang Oval.
The Opening Ceremony will be based on the theme of ‘The Universe’ and the infinite possibilities for youth, and the artistic celebration will be guided by the theme ‘Grow Together, Shine Forever’. K-Pop will be at the heart of the event, with Korean culture celebrated by dancers and singers.
Reacting to be named as one of the flagbearers for tonight’s ceremony, Wilson said,
“To be named as the Team Ireland Flagbearer for the opening ceremony is a dream come true. To be able to wave my country’s flag at such a big event like the Winter Youth Olympic Games on the opposite side of the world is a true pleasure and I’m very excited and happy about it!”
Sixteen-year-old Cooke added,
“I’m super excited to be the flagbearer, I can’t wait to carry the flag and to make my country proud.”
Competition begins for Team Ireland on Saturday 20 January, with Dubliner Cooke competing in the Women’s Luge, with Wilson and Éabha McKenna competing in the Alpine Skiing the following day. The fourth member of Team Ireland, Thomas Dooley, arrives in the Gangwon next week to compete in the Dual Moguls.
This is the fourth edition of the Winter Youth Olympic Games, which are held in the Gangwon region of South Korea and occur from the 19 January until the 1 February. Run under the International Olympic Committee, Gangwon 2024 will be see a record number of athletes compete, with 1,900 athletes from 79 countries across the world taking part.
Live coverage of the Games can be found HERE, with regular updates on the Team Ireland social media handles.
