YTN Radio (FM 94.5) [YTN ON-AI RADIO]
□ Broadcast date: January 29, 2026 (Thursday)
□ Progress: AI chatbot “Air”
□ Assistant host: PD Kim Woo-seong
□ Appearance: Choi Dong-ho, sports critic
– Milan Cortina Winter Olympics opens next week
– ‘Year of Sports’ 2026, from the Olympics to the World Cup
– Taegeuk warrior ‘Top 10’? It’s quite possible. “You’ll get more than 3 gold.”
– Golden Day 21st, aiming for 4 gold medals in short track
– The big match is ‘USA vs. Canada’ ice hockey, Trump aftermath
* The text below may differ from the actual broadcast content, so please check the broadcast for more accurate content.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. On-air main talk time, on-mic time. I previously visited the Winter Olympics in advance using data. Well, that’s data. We will tell you about the heated competition that will melt this winter with people’s eyes and warmth. Sports critic Choi Dong-ho appeared on the various aspects of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. welcome.
◇ Dongho Choi: Yes, hello.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. When it comes to sports on YTN radio, it’s Choi Dong-ho. Earlier, while watching the news with the listeners, I asked, “Why are the Olympics held every four years?” I guess this has something to do with the history of the ancient Olympics.
◇ Dong-ho Choi: So, it’s the modern Olympics. It started anew in 1896. At the center was Coubertin‘s ideas. However, when it comes to where Coubertin received the glory of the modern Olympics, one of the trends that swept Europe from the mid-19th century was Hellenism. Hellenism is the center of Europe, and the foundation of the world is Europe. But where are its European roots? It’s Greece. But at that time, relics of ancient Greece had just been discovered, and the ruins of Olympia, Greece, where the ancient Olympics were held, had just been unearthed. Let’s bring it back to life. In creating the modern Olympics, let’s inherit the tradition of the ancient Olympics in terms of its form and content. The Olympics are held once every four years.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. As expected, everyone, you can hear it much better than hearing it through data. There are actually a lot of sporting events in 2026, so in fact, the World Cup is right around the corner. The Winter Olympics are starting next week, and there are a lot of major international competitions here.
◇ Dongho Choi: There aren’t many cases like this. The Winter Olympics are being held. Once the Winter Olympics open and conclude next month, the WBC World Baseball Classic will be held in March. Once March passes, there will be the North and Central America World Cup in June. And when the weather gets a little cooler, the Asian Games will be held in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan in September.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. Everyone, sports events like this should be fun events that cheer you up in your life. Critic Choi Dong-ho, we will invite you frequently to analyze everything from the game to the strategy. What about the 2026 Winter Olympics? Some of you may have heard of Turin. Even those who are not very old. But I went there again, Milan, Cortina d’Ampezzo. This part of Italy often hosts the Winter Olympics.
◇ Dongho Choi: Because the Alps pass through the northern and central regions of Italy. And since this area of Cortina d’Ampezzo also has the Alps and an excellent natural environment, it may actually feel a bit unfamiliar to us, but it is famous as a mecca for skiing and a representative winter resort in Europe. So, this is where the Winter Olympics were held in 1956. So, to see how beautiful the mountain landscape and the natural environment are, UNESCO designated the Dolomiti Mountains, the Dolomiti region where Cortina d’Ampezzo is located, as a World Natural Heritage area. And we have the 007 series. I watched it a lot during my generation, and one of them was ‘For Your Eyes Only’. All skiing scenes were filmed there in Cortina d’Ampezzo. A little more time passed and there was ‘Cliffhanger’, ‘Cliffhanger’ with Sylvester Stallone. That movie was also filmed in Cortina d’Ampezzo. The filming location is here.
◆ Kim Woo-sung: The Olympics are truly held in a famous location. Critic Choi Dong-ho provided high-quality information that allows you to enjoy not only the players’ games, but also the background that unfolds after them. There are two torches. This is a bit of an unfamiliar sight in the Olympics.
◇ Dong-ho Choi: In fact, two torches were installed at the Beijing Olympics. This stadium was artificially built in the city center on a street, this time in Milan, Milan’s Arco della Pace, translated into Korean as the Arch of Peace, or the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. There is an Arc de Triomphe in Milan. This Arc de Triomphe is Arco della Pace. It is said that this sacred fire is hung on the Arco della Pace. I can’t imagine.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: It’s fascinating.
◇ Dongho Choi: If you were to actually hang it up there and watch it at night, I think it would be a torch that would have a very Italian, Milanese design and a certain aesthetic sense. And in Cortina d’Ampezzo, a torch will be installed in the city center square.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. This is already happening before my eyes and I am very curious. What many people are waiting for during the Olympics is how the torch will be lit. I hope you will look forward to it this time as well.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: But I also played in the 2024 Paris Olympics at historical relics and relics in downtown Paris, and showed everything at the opening ceremony. The same goes for Milan this time, and the next time we hold a major international sports event, I hope that we can show off our culture while keeping Gwanghwamun, Gyeongbokgung Palace, Changdeokgung Palace, and other relics within that scope.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Wow, that’s a cool idea. It will soon be 40 years since the 1988 Seoul Olympics were held. I hope this idea will be reflected when the Olympics are held again. And since it’s the Winter Olympics, you’ll probably think of all the sports you already know, like curling, which you remember as “English and American!”, but there’s mountain skiing. As for this, I don’t know if this is the carving ski I know of. What is mountain skiing? Because skiing slopes are set up according to competition standards, and you can move between the poles at the fastest speed, but I think that mountain skiing down the mountain is something only special forces do. What is this?
◇ Choi Dong-ho: Special forces do it. The scene that symbolically shows the special forces’ winter training is when they are wearing white camouflage uniforms and carrying skis. It’s the same. What this means is that mountain skiing is a sport that combines skiing and mountaineering. However, this time, it was adopted as an official event for the first time at the Milan/Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics. So, when we climb a mountain, we climb up. As you go up, there is also a walking section near the top. Since you went up, you have to come down. But they all go up on skis, walk with skis on their backs, and come down on skis. But if you imagine, there is a ski slope, right? You go up that ski slope with your skis upside down. afoot.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: It won’t be easy. If the lift breaks down, don’t ride it, right?
◇ Choi Dong-ho: Then, I climb to the top and walk with skis on my back for the walking section. And then again, it’s an event where you ski down, but broadly speaking, there are three events. There are the vertical, which competes only on the ascending section, the sprint, which competes all the way up, walking, and down, and the relay. In this Winter Olympics, three events will be held: the individual men’s and women’s sprint and the mixed relay.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: You might think this is perfect for people who like hiking and skiing, but for some reason, cross-country is also at the level of an ironman, reaching human limits. But even if you really listen to this, you have to go skiing after hiking. Guys, this looks great. Yes, those who will feel the new charm of skiing, please look forward to it. I think I should ask about the expectations for our athletes. Well, after the opening ceremony, we are going to hunt for medals starting on the 8th. At first glance, our country’s people say, “Oh, now our country is doing well” because stars appear from time to time in short track, speed skating, and other sports, but they didn’t even make it to the top 10 in the last competition. This time, there were expectations as to whether we could make it into the top 10.
◇ Dongho Choi: I think I will enter the top 10. Because our goal, as officially announced by the Korea Sports Council, is to win three or more gold medals. However, the announcement was made somewhat humbly. So, when estimating this target, it comes out like this, from a minimum number to a maximum number. The minimum among them is 3 gold medals. I think there will be at least 3 gold medals.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. Being in the top 10 with three or more gold medals means that our country can become one of the top ten countries in the world not only in the Summer Olympics but also in the Winter Olympics. Where should we see the first gold medal?
◇ Choi Dong-ho: We also mentioned our artificial intelligence earlier, and there was a snowboarder named Lee Sang-ho who was known as ‘Cabbage Boy’ during the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. Silver medalist. Lee Sang-ho’s match is scheduled for February 8th, so I’m looking forward to his first medal. The event that is considered to be closer to a clear gold medal than Lee Sang-ho is the short track mixed relay. This short track mixed relay will be held on February 10th, so that’s when we can expect the first gold medal. But short track is really a medal field. We won a total of 33 gold medals at the Winter Olympics. Of these 33, 26 came from short track. It’s 78.8%. This time too, there are 9 gold medals and 9 events held in short track, and we are participating in 8 events excluding the men’s 500m. However, I have high expectations for all eight sports. He has enough skills to bring home a medal.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: That’s right. Even though he is a representative player of our nationality, we are such a powerful country that he is even naturalized as a representative player of other countries. Please tell us some points to watch. You have to tell us about the races in which you are looking forward to great matches, but I think short track will be included as well.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: You have to watch short track, and the sport I want to talk about in particular is snowboarding, and snowboarder Choi Ga-on. I’m a seventeen-year-old high school girl. She is a snowboarding princess who suddenly appeared like a comet when she won the World Cup in 2023. I participated in the World Cup series three times this season and won all three times. However, if Choi Ga-on wants to climb to the top of the women’s snowboarding halfpipe at this Olympics, she needs to get permission from just one person. That one person is Chloe Kim.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Oh, it’s famous.
◇ Dong-ho Choi: He is a Korean-American and competed as a member of the U.S. national team, winning two consecutive Olympic titles in Pyeongchang and Beijing. This time, we will try to win for the third time in a row.
◆ Kim Woo-sung: A player who tries to prevent a 3-game losing streak.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: The battle between Chloe Kim and Lee Choi Ga-on. From a certain point of view, Chloe Kim is the best star in existence and a new star, Choi Ga-on, who is challenging the best star. And another fun game, I want to see it too. Well, it’s ice hockey. Ice hockey is played at such a high level with the participation of NHL North American ice hockey players, who are the best players in 12 years, and Canada is at the top in ice hockey.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Well, that league is so great.
◇ Dong-ho Choi: But I think Canada and the United States will meet in the finals. I hope these two countries meet. I think there will be chaos when Canada and the United States meet.
◆ Kim Woo-sung: Actually, politically right now.
◇ Dongho Choi: That’s right. So, in fact, in February of last year, didn’t U.S. President Trump already make outrageous remarks such as “Canada is the 51st state of the United States” and “He is the governor of the United States” in reference to the Canadian Prime Minister? However, at this time, a competition called ‘Nations Face-Off’ was held in which four countries participated. The United States and Canada met in the final.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Normally, when playing ice hockey, everyone throws their fists.
◇ Dong-ho Choi: So, when the American national anthem was played, Canadian fans booed. It has just begun. A brawl broke out just 9 seconds after the game started.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: That’s right.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: After breaking up and the game resumed, there were three more brawls.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: They say go away from the Korea-Japan game.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: But even now, President Trump has imposed 100% tariffs on Canada. And the Canadian Prime Minister responded by saying, “Looking at the United States now, there is nothing normal about it.” Canadian emotions are boiling over. Therefore, it is expected that Canada will meet the United States in the finals. This finals will be really hot, and my prediction is that if Canada and the United States meet in the ice hockey finals, the whole world will unite and cheer for Canada with ‘We are the World’.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. A foreign student around me once cheered so passionately for the Korea-Japan match that I strangely had fun cheering for Korea even though I didn’t know much about Korea-Japan relations. People all over the world will support Canada. We also talked about Choi Ga-on’s halfpipe, which is a snowboarding sport where halfpipe performs tricks.
◇ Dongho Choi: This is a snowboarding halfpipe, half, half. A pipe is cut into a cylinder. Cut the entire cylinder and do tricks on it. Go snowboarding. But this snowboard, if I can sum it up, has two characteristics. One is exhilarating but dangerous. So, like an extreme game, it stimulates a great sense of adventure, but because you are jumping and spinning from such a high place, there is a high risk of injury. So, in reality, there is no player who has not suffered an injury once they reach the national team level. But when you go to the Olympics or international competitions, snowboarding is a teenagers’ world. In fact, more than half of the snowboarding gold medals at the Winter Olympics are held by teenagers, and this time, our athlete Ga-on Choi is also there.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Born in 2008.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: But why is it a world of teenagers when the majority of other sports are people in their 20s? So the BBC did an analysis. It’s the BBC in England. To sum it up in one word from the BBC’s analysis, “Teenagers do well because they are fearless.”
◆ Kim Woo-seong: We usually say, “Wow, riding a bicycle like that is dangerous,” and this is the same thing.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: Enfant Terrible, a period of unstoppable tempest and turbulence, these characteristics of teenagers are very evident in snowboarding.
◆ Kim Woo-sung: People who go to ski resorts in the winter and people who enjoy skiing get a little angry and say, “Oh, those snowboarders.” That’s because the style is slightly different. Now, in figure skating, is Cha Jun-hwan still the next figure skater after Kim Yu-na? There is interest, but I think expectations are not that high right now. How should I view it?
◇ Dong-ho Choi: But still, the seeds we sown through Yuna Kim have blossomed into figure skating flowers. So now we are evaluated as a figure skating powerhouse. There are five figure skating events in these Olympics. There are men’s and women’s singles, pair skating, ice dancing, and team competitions. For the first time, we will also participate in the team competition. However, it is not an event that you can participate in a team event just because you want to. The qualification standard is the top 10 countries, and it was difficult to get all the players for each event in this team event, so I couldn’t participate in the past. I’m leaving now. We have now become a powerhouse in figure skating. This time, I have high hopes for Cha Jun-hwan, the men’s figure skater. Cha Jun-hwan has been winning medals at the Junior Grand Prix since he was young, and especially at last year’s Harbin Asian Games, he was the first in men’s figure skating history to win a gold medal. This time, he is challenging for a medal, and looking at his progress in international competitions so far, I would say that Cha Jun-hwan is still worth aiming for as long as he makes no mistakes in jumping. In the women’s race, Lee Hae-in and Shin Ji-ah are competing, and Shin Ji-ah is a 17-year-old high school student. Jia Shin has been amazing since she was young. Starting in 2022, I won a silver medal at the Junior World Championships for four consecutive years. And I participated in the Four Continents competition this year. At the same time, I felt a bit sluggish last season. Because quite a few players go through the same slump, but they grow. Because her body changes as she grows taller, it is difficult to find the center of gravity when turning and jumping in figure skating, so she performed a bit sluggishly. However, Shin Ji-ah’s skating is not for someone who uses such difficult techniques, but her skating is smooth and stable and her expressiveness is good, so she is worth aiming for a medal.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Yes. Figure skating is also a lot of fun. Cha Jun-hwan, isn’t he already a gold medalist based on his looks? yes. For now, that’s it. Then, it’s the same with sports days, but now speed competitions attract a lot of people, and short track and speed skating, people say, “The 21st is the golden day.”
◇ Choi Dong-ho: On the 21st, our artificial intelligence talked about it earlier. We are expecting up to 4 gold medals on the 21st. Because it can’t be talked about except for Golden Day and short track. As I mentioned earlier, I will be competing in 8 short track events, and I expect medals in all 8 events. But which event comes closest to a gold medal? It’s 1500 meters. Korean short track racing has traditionally been strong at 1500 meters. The 500 meters are weak, and in the 1500 meters, we are placing our hopes on Choi Min-jeong for women and Jong-eon Lim for men. And the men’s 5,000 meter relay, in which a gold medal can be expected, will be held on the 21st. And another medal was Jaewon Jeong, who competed in the men’s mass start speed skating event. Jaewon Jeong also won a silver medal in Beijing. Since these four events are held, we expect gold medals in the mass start Jaewon Jeong, the men’s and women’s 1,500 meter short track, and the 5,000 meter men’s relay. However, another event that attracts attention may occur on this day. Jeong Jae-won is competing in the 1500 meters. China’s Lin Xiaojun also appeared this time.
◆ Kim Woo-sung: He was a Korean player.
◇ Dongho Choi: That’s right. Lin Xiaojun transformed from Lin Xiaojun to Lin Xiaojun. I vaporized in China. Why did you naturalize in China? Lim Hyo-jun played a prank on Lee Hwang Jae-won during training. Take off all your pants. There are also female athletes, and the ice skating federation suspended them for sexual harassment charges. It will be difficult for me to participate in the Olympics because my qualifications will be suspended. The way for me to participate in the Olympics is to become a naturalized Chinese citizen and represent China. So we met at this Olympics. The perpetrator and the victim met each other. So now it’s gaining attention.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: That’s right. If you understand the various contexts, you will understand better the feelings of cheering, although of course the players compete through the game. There is also Seongbin Yoon who is now active as an entertainer because of skeleton training. Are there any other sled-related sports we should look into?
◇ Dong-ho Choi: Seung-gi Jeong in the skeleton and Jin-soo Kim and Hyeong-geun Kim in the two-man bobsleigh are also worthy of challenging for medals. Jeong Seung-gi is in tears. So, I placed 10th at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. But after I ranked 10th, I got better and better. Things got better and I was on a roll at the 2023 World Championships, winning a bronze medal. I got injured when things were going well. Back injury. But this was a very serious injury. You may get better with the doctor’s diagnosis, but you may not be able to walk again, that’s the extent of it.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: You are seriously injured.
◇ Dong-ho Choi: After receiving treatment and rehabilitation, I came back to tears. I returned and won a bronze medal in the 3rd World Cup in 2025-2026, that is, this season. However, the stadium where the bronze medal was won is now the sliding center of Cortina d’Ampezzo.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: Everyone, please support us to see if we can stand up like a roly-poly, and our critic Dong-ho Choi has delivered these really important points to watch, as if it were a comprehensive gift set. And while we were broadcasting like this, some people asked, “Are the Winter Olympics going to be held?” You could be like this. Of course, it may be because sports have become a huge industry, as well as a place for advertising and money, but I don’t know if that’s the reason. Why are there so many people who don’t know this?
◇ Dongho Choi: It’s becoming more and more like that. First of all, I can tell you from two aspects. If you look at it from a general perspective, interest in the Olympics is decreasing not only among us but also around the world. On what basis do you say that? Olympic broadcast viewership continues to drop. Entering the 2000s. And when the local government made a proposal to host the Olympics, there were many times in the 2010s when citizens stood up and voted it down, saying, “We will not host the Olympics.” Now, as things go on like this, the IOC says, “We have to survive.” Sustainability, how can we maintain a sustainable Olympics? So let’s reduce the economic burden, protect the environment, and make the game more interesting. This is what we came up with. Another, slightly special point of view I have in our society is that in the era we live in now, our society is so dazzling. Political news is much more provocative and interesting than sports news. So, I think that because we watch political news and current events are overflowing with political news, sports have no choice but to take a backseat. But would you say that another unique feature is a characteristic of our people? It was the same during the Paris Olympics. Even then, I wasn’t really interested. There was a lot of talk about noise being reduced, but when our athletes won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics, it all caught fire at once. All at once. This time, they say they are not interested until the opening, but I expect that if they win the gold medal and Hwang Dae-heon beats Lin Xiaojun in the short track, it will ignite once again.
◆ Kim Woo-sung: This damn Trump is like this, and all of a sudden, people are going crazy while watching ice hockey in Canada and the United States. yes. It’s really fun. And, as you mentioned money earlier, some national team players are now posting adult content on platforms that post it. Of course, it’s not like posting naked pictures, but this bitter scene is because there is no money in amateur sports or Winter Olympics sports.
◇ Dongho Choi: Yes, that’s right. She is a member of Germany’s women’s two-man bobsled team. Lisa Bukwitz. He is a very famous player. I won a gold medal at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. He is also the world championship champion.
◆ Kim Woo-sung: He’s at the top now.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: This athlete wants to participate in the Olympics, so he has to train. There is no training fee. And if you want to participate in the Olympics, you have to fly and stay there. It is also difficult to raise the cost of participation. So, after thinking about it, I uploaded photos of myself in a bikini and photos of myself in a sports bra to an online paid site to earn money.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: It’s a last resort solution.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: But this player said this. “It costs 50,000 euros, or at least 86 million won, to run my team in one season, but no one sponsors me just because I won a gold medal. This is the sad reality of an unpopular sport.”
◆ Kim Woo-seong: That’s right. While watching ‘Woo Saeng-soon (The Best Moment of Our Lives)’, there are people who like the story, but in fact, no one has made a donation to the Handball Association.
◇ Choi Dong-ho: However, during the Summer Olympics, when handball is selected for the Olympic finals, the right order is just mechanically repeated. Then it’s a shame. Because 12 years ago, 16 years ago, it was Eusangsun, but we are still talking about Wussengsun in 2026. This is not possible.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: That’s right. As for sports, they go out wearing the Taegeuk symbol. I don’t go out under my own name. Of course, there is a name, but you must put the value of the Taegeuk mark together. And I think I should briefly point out one last thing. If you have any useful tips or important information to enjoy this winter Olympics 200%, please give me a final summary.
◇ Dong-ho Choi: Ah, I was a little worried from the beginning of this Olympics. When an international competition is held in Europe or the Americas, we start to sigh. Day and night change. I’m going to have a hard time. It’s an unfavorable situation where day and night change, so you see it at night. At dawn. Then, when the Olympics or World Cup are held early in the morning and Son Heung-min’s game is held, convenience store sales actually increase. If you look at the actual use of a credit card, it all shows a propensity for consumption. So now we have the supplies. A can of beer and chicken. And another thing is to use social media such as SNS a lot. Because traditional legacy media is now obsolete. And stars are created in every Olympics, but where are those stars created? It is created on SNS or YouTube. If you look often, you will come across a lot of interesting things.
◆ Kim Woo-seong: If you enjoy it that much, but still want to know more, just turn on YTN radio. Critic Choi Dong-ho has brought us together and will provide you with really interesting information. I will listen to today’s message up to this point. thank you
◇ Dongho Choi: Yes, thank you.
YTN Kim Se-ryeong ([email protected])
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