From Jin being a torchbearer to Judo team member Huh Mimi gushing about V, BTS fever takes over Paris Olympics 2024

BTS

BTS was honoured at the Paris Olympics 2024 opening ceremony as a representative of South Korea, alongside well-known cultural symbols like kimchi and hanbok. Kimchi is a popular Korean dish, and hanbok is traditional Korean clothing, so being included with these iconic elements was a major recognition for BTS.

BTS RM reacts to the news

On July 27, BTS' RM (Kim Namjoon) posted on his Instagram story about BTS being mentioned. He captioned it with "bang kim han let's get it," celebrating the moment. The picture he shared included information about South Korea, such as its capital, population, language, and currency, along with three key cultural highlights: "bang-tansonyeondan (BTS)/kimchi/hanbok."

But did you know? There are other connections the global Korean boy band has with the Paris Olympics 2024 that prove their fame is out of the world:

BTS Jin is a torchbearer for 2024 Paris Olympics

K-pop star Kim Seok-jin, known as BTS' Jin, is in the spotlight for being a torchbearer at the 2024 Paris Olympics. This event reportedly boosted K-pop's overseas sales by a remarkable KRW 1.23 trillion ($889.12 million). BTS' Jin, is making headlines for participating as a torchbearer at the 2024 Paris Olympics. This event reportedly boosted K-pop's overseas sales by KRW 1.23 trillion ($889.12 million).

According to Newsian, foreign K-pop sales rose by KRW 315.9 billion compared to 2023. Europe has become a major market, accounting for 42.7% of overseas streaming sales, surpassing Asia's 14.7%. The United States also played a significant role, contributing 33.6% to streaming sales. Despite this, Asia remains strong, making up 60.2% (KRW 156.6 billion) of total overseas streaming sales.

Korea House at the Maison de la Chimie

For those who don't know, the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee and the sports ministry have set up the largest-ever Korea House for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Located in the Maison de la Chimie, the Korea House features a variety of exhibitions, interactive events, and performances to showcase Korean culture, food, and entertainment. It's no surprise that many fans visited the venue and shared pictures and videos. From the viral videos, it was clear that BTS were a major highlight at the Korea House. Clips showed BTS' 2018 MAMA speech, pictures of the group and J-Hope at the award ceremony, and a large plushie of Jin's buddy Wootte.

Judo team member Huh Mimi

South Korean National Judo team member Huh Mimi talked about her favourite idol, BTS' Kim Taehyung, after winning the silver medal at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. On July 30, in an interview with South Korean media agency News 1, Huh Mimi shared her thoughts on the results of the women's 57 kg class Judo event, held at the Champ de Mars Arena in Paris, and also spoke about BTS' V, also known as Kim Taehyung.

Huh Mimi finished second to Canadian Judoka Christa Deguchi,. She is South Korea's first Olympic medalist in Judo for 2024. Two years ago, Huh Mimi shared that she is a big fan of the popular K-pop group BTS, and her favourite member is Kim Taehyung. She mentioned that BTS music is her source of energy; whenever she feels low, listening to their songs helps her feel better. She also expressed a desire to meet them.

Gymnast Elisa Iorio is a proud ARMY

Gymnast Elisa Iorio, who competed in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, is a fan of BTS. She proudly showed off her "Love Yourself" tattoo in Korean on her back, which also includes the album's logo. Elisa seems to be a big BTS fan, as her bio includes "Love Yourself" in Korean, and she has a highlights section featuring pictures of all the BTS members.