President Moon Jae-in says that the PyeongChang Winter Olympics will show the world that sports can help overcome differences in politics and ideologies and that the event will mark the start of establishing peace in the region.

The president made the remarks on Monday during his speech for the opening ceremony of the 132nd session of the International Olympic Committee(IOC) in Gangneung.

Moon said that the PyeongChang Olympics is set to open thanks to efforts by the IOC which has repeatedly confirmed that dialogue and peace coincide with the Olympic spirit.

He added that just about a month or two ago, many countries worried about the safety of the Olympics, and North Korea's Olympic participation and an inter-Korean joint team was considered impossible, but these things have become reality.

Moon said that the PyeongChang Olympics is the start of Olympics in Northeast Asia, as Japan and China are set to host the 2020 Summer Olympic Games and the 2022 Winter Olympics. 

He said that if the PyeongChang Olympics contribute to peace and progress in the region and the world, it would be creating the most meaningful Olympic legacy in the history of the games.