The Fourth Winter Youth Olympic Games are set to kick off in Gangwon Province on Friday for a 14-day run.

The opening ceremony, under the theme of “Let Us Shine,” will be held simultaneously at 8 p.m. at the Gangneung Oval, the speed skating venue, and the Pyeongchang Dome for some 13-thousand spectators.

About 18-hundred athletes from 79 countries will compete in 15 disciplines, including alpine skiing, the biathlon, curling and skeleton, at four cities and counties in Gangwon Province, including Gangneung, Pyeongchang, Jeongseon and Hoengseong.

This is the first time for the Winter Youth Olympics to be held outside of Europe since the inaugural Games in 2012, with Innsbruck in Austria, Lillehammer in Norway, and Lausanne in Switzerland hosting the sporting festival. 

The Youth Olympics is a multi-sport event for athletes between 15 and 18 organized by the International Olympic Committee held every four years in the winter and summer consistent with the current Olympic Games format.