Hyundai heats up PyeongChang Olympic fever
People skate on Hyundai Motor’s Light-Up Ice Rink at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul in this December 2017 file photo. / Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group
K-pop singer Kim So-hye carries the Olympic flame, riding in a Hyundai Ioniq electric vehicle, during the torch relay on Jeju Island in this Nov. 2 file photo. Kim’s father drove the car. / Yonhap
By Park Jae-hyuk
Hyundai Motor is sponsoring the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and Paralympics for the success of the event, after it signing a deal as an official partner with the organizing committee in 2015.
As a tier-one sponsor, the world’s fifth-largest carmaker has carried out various campaigns to attract more public attention to the Games.
The company came up with the slogan, “Light up your energy,” for its marketing campaigns during the Olympics
To encourage people to wish for the success of the international event, the automaker opened Hyundai Motor’s Light Up Ice Rink at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in December.
People aged seven and above will be able to use the facility on a 750-sqaure-meter space for free until Feb. 25.
Birches decorated with bright electric lights in the shape of snowflakes enable visitors to indirectly experience PyeongChang’s winter in downtown Seoul.
Hyundai said it will also hold various events, such as cheering and cultural events, at a site near the ice rink, so as to heat up the Olympic fever.
Participation in torch relay
Hyundai Motor has also participated in the torch relay, after recruiting 192 runners.
The company defined the runners as dreamers and achievers. Dreamers were those who made efforts to achieve their dreams, and achievers were those who already achieved their dreams in various fields, such as sports, media, culture and business.
They include the Korean men’s national ice hockey team head coach Baek Chi-sun, and ice hockey player Park Woo-sang; Korean history lecturer Seol Min-suk; JTBC anchor Kang Ji-young; and aspiring anchor Woo Tae-young.
Hyundai also provided K-pop Singer Kim So-hye with a Hyundai Ioniq electric vehicle (EV) for a 200-meter leg of the torch relay on Jeju Island last November, drawing public attention to eco-friendly energy.
The former I.O.I member conveyed the torch, riding in a car driven by her father.
Jeju citizens charged the vehicle by running on a specially-designed stage that converted energy from their footsteps into electrical power.
"It is an honor to see the Ioniq powered by the passion of citizens used for the torch relay," Hyundai Executive Vice President Lee Kwang-guk said. "We will consolidate our determination to develop futuristic eco-friendly technologies."