Olympia 2018: South Korea wants joint ice hockey team with the North

South Korea wants to make Olympic history: The host country of the winter games in Pyeongchang wants to have a joint women’s ice hockey team with North Korea.

This would be the first joint sporting appearance of the hostile states on the Olympic stage in 70 years. In 1948, Korea, which was still united at the time, had played in St. Peter’s Winter Games. Moritz and in the summer in London.

South Korea’s Deputy Sports Minister Roh Tae Kang announced the corresponding plan on Friday. Both teams are also to march in together at the opening and closing ceremony. So far, this has only been the case at the Summer Games 2000 in Sydney and 2004 in Athens and, for the last time, at the 2006 Winter Games in Turin.

Last week, for the first time since 2015, high-level talks were held in the demilitarised zone of the border town of Panmunjom in the south and north. The North had previously signalled its general willingness to send active participants to the competitions in Pyeongchang.

On the 20th. On 1 January, details of North Korea’s participation will be discussed at a meeting at the IOC in Lausanne. High-ranking members of the government and sports officials as well as a delegation from the Pyeongchang Organizing Committee are expected from both Korean states.

The IOC welcomed the willingness of the North and extended the deadline for the athletes. So far only the pair runners Ryom Tae Ok and Kim Ju Sik have qualified from the north. However, it is likely that the IOC will award wildcards to other North Korean athletes.