(ATR) Lillehammer has been blanketed by fresh snow less than 90 days until the opening of the Winter Youth Olympic Games.
"We've received the first 10 centimeters of snow – and there´s plenty more to come," said Inge Andersen, the secretary general of the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committees. "I´m sure that we will present the YOG 2016 in beautiful winter surroundings in February next year."
The new snowfall in the Norwegian town that was the setting the 1994 Olympic Winter Games is timely. Lillehammer will stage FIS Nordic ski events at the Olympic venues, which will also be used for the Winter YOG, during the first weekend in December.
Lillehammer 2016 mascot Sjogg was seen frolicking in the fresh snow for the first time on the Winter YOG website and on social media.
"In the Lillehammer region, Sjogg is the local word for snow," Andersen noted. "This mascot was the result of an international design competition. It was created by 18-year-old Line Ansethmoen from Lillehammer, and thus embodies the principle of the youth involvement in every aspect of the Games."
It has also been revealed that Princess Ingrid Alexandra will light the same cauldron that her father, His Royal Highness Crown Prince Haakon did in 1994, at the Youth Olympic Games opening ceremony on Feb. 12.
"We´re both honored and proud that Princess Ingrid Alexandra will light the cauldron for the YOG 2016 – exactly 22 years after her father, Crown Prince Haakon, lit the cauldron for the Lillehammer 1994 Olympic Games," Andersen said.
"The support of the Royal Family to YOG 2016 in particular and for Norwegian sport in general, represents a true inspiration for everyone involved."
Tickets for the opening ceremony at Lysgårdsbakkene Ski Jumping Arena went on sale on Nov. 15 and can be purchased via the website Billettservice.no.
The opening ceremony will be directed by Sigrid Strøm Reibo. The 34-year-old Norwegian is also the director at the Norwegian National Theater.
Approximately 1,100 athletes between the ages of 15 and 18 from 70 nations will compete at the second edition of the Winter YOG in Lillehammer, Hamar, Gjovik, Oyer and Oslo, Feb. 12-21.
Written by Brian Pinelli
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