Team Korea wins figure skating gold on final day of Gangwon Youth Olympics

Spectators packed into the stands for the final event in Gangneung while the snow events wrapped further up north in Pyeongchang.

Kim Hyun-gyeom performs in the men's single skate in the figure skating team event at the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympics at Gangneung Ice Arena in Gangneung, Gangwon on Thursday. [YONHAP]

GANGNEUNG, Gangwon — Korea took gold in team figure skating on Thursday, capping off the competition on the ice at the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympics.

Spectators packed into the stands for the final event in Gangneung while the snow events wrapped further up north in Pyeongchang.

The ice dance duo of Kim Jin-ny and Lee Na-mu kicked things off at Gangneung Ice Arena in Gangneung, Gangwon, finishing third in the category with a score of 82.15, coming behind the teams from France and the United States.

Korea did not enter a team in the pair skate, with France and the United States the only two delegations to add points in the category, but kept their spot near the top of the table.

Kim Hyun-gyeom, who earlier won a gold medal in the individual men’s single skate, scored a 136.38 despite taking a fall in the beginning of a dramatic program to put Korea in second place heading into the final category.

The booming sound of the music sent vibrations down the rows of seats in the stands with each program, drawing the whole stadium into the spectacle on the ice. Cheers erupted every time a skater performed a twirl in the air or spin on the ice, the excitement for the sport palpable in the energetic arena.

Shin Ji-a brought things home in the women’s single skate, scoring a 137.48 — well above a needed 122.77 to oust the United States from first place in the category and nab the five points. Shin earlier won silver in the individual event.

And it was just enough to edge the Americans out of the top spot, with Team Korea finishing with 13 points, one above the United States.

Korea took three medals in figure skating at this year’s Youth Olympics, two gold and one silver.

BY MARY YANG [mary.yang@joongang.co.kr]