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On August 2, 2024, BTS' Jin was honoured with the title of 'Best Olympic Torch Moment' by the Paris 2024 Olympics Commentary on X (formerly known as Twitter). The final competition for this accolade was between the K-pop artist and renowned Indian rifle shooter Abhinav Bindra. The winner was determined through fan votes on social media.
For those who might not know the eldest member of BTS, made headlines as the first K-pop artist to participate in the Paris 2024 Olympics torch relay. He notably kicked off the segment at the Louvre Pyramid Museum.
Videos of him carrying the flame quickly went viral, generating immense excitement among his fans, known as ARMYs.
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Social media erupted with congratulatory messages for the Epiphany singer when he won a friendly online competition organized by the Olympics 2024 Club, defeating other prominent figures who also carried the torch this year.
A user on X, @Catalyst_KxM13, recalled a moment from the group's variety show, RUN BTS when members would often compete for the 'Team Kim Seokjin' title. It was a well-known joke among them that any team with this name was destined to win. The user commented:
"Yeah!! Team Kim Seokjin always wins!! CONGRATULATIONS JIN."
"As expected of team KIM! SEOK! JIN!," another X user wrote.
"HE IS THE MOMENT," a fan commented.
"And we can now legit say that Jin won the Olympics," another fan added.
Other fans also extended their congratulations and gave the member nicknames such as 'Prince of Paris.'
"Congratulations THE Little Prince of Paris," a user wrote.
"OUR PROUD SUPERSTAR HEALER JIN! Always Shine Beautifully & Truly Amazing," another fan commented.
BTS' Jin clinches 'Best Olympic Torch Moment' title with fan votes
On July 26, 2024, the official social media account of the Paris 2024 Olympics announced a friendly online competition showcasing eight prominent figures who carried the torch this year. The post asked,
"Which was the best Olympic Torch (Flame) moment?"
The participants were split into two groups: Group 1 featured Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal, American singer-rapper Pharrell Williams, Indian rifle shooter Abhinav Bindra, and French football legend Arsène Wenger.
Group 2 included the BTS idol, Monacan motorsports driver Charles Leclerc, drag queen Minima Gesté and actress Halle Berry. The winners of Group 1 were Rafael Nadal and Abhinav Bindra, while the K-pop star and Halle Berry emerged victorious from Group 2.
The BTS star and Abhinav Bindra advanced to the finals, with the BTS idol ultimately securing the win.
Furthermore, the idol's appearance sparked significant buzz online, and it has been reported that his participation in the 2024 Paris Olympics torch relay played a role in K-pop's impressive KRW 1.23 trillion in international sales.
According to South Korean news source Newsian, foreign K-pop sales increased by KRW 315.9 billion from the previous year. Asia continues to be the largest market for K-pop, contributing 60.2% (KRW 156.6 billion) of the total overseas streaming revenue.
However, when breaking down the sales by region, Europe led with 42.7% of the revenue, followed by the United States with 33.6%. In contrast, Asia's contribution to streaming sales was 14.7% in 2023.
