Milan: When Sunghoon, currently a member of the K-pop boy group Enhypen, began his figure skating career as a boy, he dreamed of competing at the Winter Olympics. More than a decade later, he found himself a part of the Winter Games here in northern Italy-not as an athlete, but as a torchbearer for the relay in Milan on Thursday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Sunghoon shared his sentiments at a press conference following the opening ceremony of Korea House, the hospitality venue for the South Korean delegation during the Olympics. He expressed, "My first dream was to skate at an Olympics, but I have chosen to pursue my second dream as a pop idol. Even though I am in a different career now, I feel like I've realized my dream." As a goodwill ambassador for the Korean Olympic and Sport Committee (KSOC), Sunghoon emphasized his pride in promoting Korean sports on such a global stage.

Sunghoon, 23, had a commendable career on the ice before transitioning to music. He clinched consecutive silver medals in the junior men's singles at the Asian Open Figure Skating Trophy in 2016 and 2017, and also participated in two International Skating Union Junior Figure Skating Grand Prix events. Despite ending his skating career in 2020, Sunghoon maintains strong ties with his skating roots, having trained alongside South Korea's current male singles skaters, Cha Jun-hwan, 24, and Kim Hyun-gyeom, 19.

Reflecting on his past with his former training partners, Sunghoon plans to support them by attending their short program competition on Tuesday. "It feels like only yesterday we were training together. It is so great to see them now at the Olympics after all these years," he mentioned. Sunghoon also expressed his admiration for Cha, stating, "I wouldn't say we were rivals. Jun-hwan was so much better. I always learned so much from him both as a figure skater and an older brother figure."