The city of Busan has set a new record at the 106th National Winter Sports Festival, securing its highest-ever medal count and maintaining its fifth-place overall ranking for the 18th consecutive year.
The event, held from February 18 to 21 in Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, saw Busan’s team of 250 participants, including 172 athletes and 78 officials, achieve remarkable success.
Busan clinched a total of 47 medals, including 19 gold, 16 silver, and 12 bronze, accumulating a record-breaking 491 points.
This surpasses last year’s total of 32 medals, which included 8 gold, 10 silver, and 14 bronze, and also exceeds the previous record of 35 medals set at the 104th festival.
Particularly notable is the gold medal count, which more than doubled from 8 to 19, marking Busan’s most successful Winter Sports Festival performance to date.
Despite challenges in training conditions, Busan’s skiing team excelled, securing 41 medals, including 18 gold, 13 silver, and 10 bronze, significantly contributing to the city’s overall ranking.
Jeon Jun-sang, competing in cross-country skiing, achieved an extraordinary feat by winning five gold medals. Choi Beom-geun, in alpine skiing, claimed four gold medals, while Heo Bu-gyeong, another cross-country competitor, also secured four golds.
Lee Eui-jin rounded out the top performers, earning three gold medals in cross-country skiing. These outstanding performances underscore Busan’s growing strength in winter sports.
The 106th National Winter Sports Festival featured 4,855 participants, including 3,059 athletes and 1,796 officials, across eight sports disciplines, including ice skating, ice hockey, skiing, biathlon, curling, bobsleigh/skeleton, mountaineering, and luge.
