ILLUSTRATION ADAPTED FROM SHUTTERSTOCKK“On the international front, the two sides
agreed to demonstrate their collective wisdom,
talents, and solidarity by jointly participating
in international sports events such as the 2018
Asian Games.”
This was fourth of six pledges in the joint
declaration signed by South Korean President
Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader
Kim Jong-un at a historic summit in April 2018
to formally end the 1950s Korean War. And as
the upcoming Games looms, all eyes will
undoubtedly be on the combined Korean
delegation, as both sides work out ways to
organise their athletes in the most medal–
winning combination.
North and South Korea had initially
earmarked seven of this year’s Asiad events –
table tennis, basketball, judo, soft tennis,
hockey, canoeing, and rowing – for
participation from athletes of both sides, but
the fate of this lineup was thrown into
uncertainty after the Olympic Council of Asia
(OCA) denied requests to increase the size
of the mixed team, Korea Sports Council
chairman Lee Ki-hong announced after his
meeting with OCA president Sheikh Ahmad
Fahad Al-Sabah earlier this year. In contrast,
the International Table Tennis Federation
allowed the two states a larger joint team at
the World Championships in May.
With a smaller than expected number of
athlete entries, there will inevitably be some
players excluded from participating, and this
has created a dilemma for the Koreas, whose
joint women’s ice hockey team at last year’s
winter Olympics faced criticism from Seoul
that a shared team arrangement deprived
Olympic-standard athletes from both sides from
competing. South Korea’s football association
has also been vocal about its disapproval, saying
the move calls for unnecessary sacrifice from
its players, who will be exempted from the
country’s mandatory two-year military service
if they bring home a gold from the Games.
Currently, the only sport where a united
endeavour might still be possible is canoeing,
The Koreas at Asiad:
A Fraught Combination?
Text Thomas Inhye Lee
since both states lack a national team.
The Korean Canoe Federation has been
preparing for a joint entry since late 2017,
and is scheduling open practice sessions on
either side of the border: at the Han River in
Seoul and the Daedong River in Pyeongyang.
The canoers will compete under the Korean
Unification Flag. agOPINION