The graduation ceremony in Tokyo was two days ago when North Korean television broadcasts pictures from the Olympic Games for the first time. A women’s soccer game was broadcast – albeit not in full.
The closing ceremony of the Olympic Games was already two days ago when North Korea’s state television (KCTV) reported for the first time on the competitions from Tokyo. According to media reports, the central broadcaster delivered competition images for the first time on Tuesday.
The women’s soccer game between Great Britain and Chile was broadcast, at least in part. The television viewers could have seen 70 minutes of the encounter – in poor image quality and without comment. At this point in time, however, the game was almost three weeks ago: The game between the two national teams was played on July 21st.
Unclear origin of the image material
According to the website “NK News”, which provides news and analysis about North Korea, it is also questionable how KCTV got the picture material. In recent years, the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union has offered Pyongyang officially licensed footage from the games as part of a partnership with a South Korean broadcaster. When asked whether there was a similar agreement this year, the Broadcasting Union did not respond.
It is not uncommon for KCTV to broadcast the Olympics or other important sporting events with a long delay – especially since there was little reason this year without their own participation.
The games were broadcast just a few days after the opening ceremony, according to the BBC report, which is based on information from the South Korean news agency “Yonhap”. According to “NK News”, however, it was a purely digital sports channel that was not accessible to the general public.
No North Korean athletes in more than 30 years
North Korea itself had not sent any athletes to Tokyo that year – for the first time since 1988, when Pyongyang boycotted the competitions in Seoul during the Cold War. This year, the regime refrained from participating in order to protect its own athletes from the corona virus. According to the BBC, dictator Kim Jong-un’s government continues to claim that there are no Covid cases in the country. However, experts consider this to be unlikely.
At the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, North and South Korea even provided a joint women’s ice hockey team.
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I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
