Kim Yu-na holds the mascots for the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics and Paralympics. /Courtesy of the Organizing Committee of the Pyeongchang Olympics Kim Yu-na holds the mascots for the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics and Paralympics. /Courtesy of the Organizing Committee of the Pyeongchang Olympics
The mascots for the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics and Paralympics have been unveiled.
Organizers on Thursday said the characters represent the white tiger and Asiatic black bear.
A tiger was also the mascots of the Seoul summer Olympics in 1988, but this one is white for winter.
The Asiatic black bear for the Paralympics symbolizes strong will and courage and is also the emblematic animal of Gangwon Province, where the events will take place.
The organizing committees plan to hold various events to promote the mascots in Seoul and Pyeongchang next month, and in Rio de Janeiro during the summer Olympics in August.
Park Sa-lim, Seoul