Seo Yi-ra of the men's team also said major preparations are already over and he will focus on maintaining the best condition for the competition.

"Contrary to concerns, I am not that nervous," Seo said. "This is a festival of the world that will not come twice. I want to enjoy this festival."

Kim A-lang, the oldest female skater in the national team, said her teammates are especially focusing on the relay program.

"The relay competition is meaningful as the five of us can win medals together," Kim said. "The teammates are saying, 'If we fail to make desirable results in individual events, we can forget about them as long as we do good in the relay.'"

"We are trying not to panic but cope smoothly with any circumstances," Kim said, apparently hinting at aggressive tactics used by Chinese rivals.

Kim said it is true that the team suffered major confusion last month when teammate Shim Suk-hee temporarily left the training venue after allegedly being assaulted by her own coach. Despite that, the incident became an opportunity for the members to bond even closer, Kim added.

The country, which has won medals in short track speed skating in every Olympics since it became an official sport in 1992, is widely expected to win more gold at the first Winter Games to be hosted at home.

Shim and Choi Min-jeong are strong medal candidates at the competition. Although the male skaters receive relatively less attention than the female counterparts, they are also aiming to secure the country's first gold in the men's 1,500 meter race Saturday.

Seo, Lim, and Hwang Dae-heon will compete in the race. South Korea grabbed gold medals in the event at the 2006 Winter Games courtesy of Viktor An, who later changed his nationality to Russian. Lee Jung-soo captured the top spot in the 2010 competition.

The men's team, however, failed to grab any medals in the Sochi Winter Olympics, making the upcoming event more important, as it will be an opportunity for them to recover their honor. Hwang currently stands at No. 1 in the global ranking of men's 1,500m skaters.

"Our teammates are making best efforts by saying, 'Let's do something,' all together," Seo said. (Yonhap)