Olympic Games organizers formally apologized for mistakenly introducing South Korean athletes as North Koreans during the opening ceremony in Paris. On Friday evening, as South Korean athletes paraded with their national flag on a boat along the Seine River, they were incorrectly announced in both French and English as representing the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, which is officially known as the Republic of Korea.
The error has prompted widespread confusion and criticism. The organizers have expressed their deep regret for the mix-up, acknowledging the mistake and vowing to address the issue.
IOC President Thomas Bach is set to meet with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol to discuss the incident. Meanwhile, the South Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism has announced plans to file a “strong government-level complaint” with the French government over the error.
South Korea is participating in the 2024 Olympics with a team of 143 athletes competing in 21 sports, while North Korea, which is returning to the Games after a hiatus since 2016, has sent 16 athletes.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has formally apologized after South Korean athletes were mistakenly introduced as North Koreans during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Games. This error occurred when South Korean competitors were announced as representing the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) while floating down the Seine River. The DPRK, the official name for North Korea, was also incorrectly used for the North Korean delegation later in the event.
In response to the blunder, South Korean Vice Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Jang Mi Ran, has sought a meeting with IOC President Thomas Bach to discuss the matter. Additionally, the South Korean Foreign Ministry has been urged to lodge a formal complaint with the French government to address the incident at a diplomatic level.
The South Korean Olympic Committee has also requested that the Paris Games organizers take measures to prevent similar errors in the future. IOC spokesperson Mark Adams expressed deep regret over the incident, acknowledging the seriousness of the mistake and its impact.
IOC spokesperson Mark Adams addressed the error during a news conference on Saturday, calling it an “operational mistake” and expressing deep regret. Adams explained that with numerous details to manage during the ceremony, this mistake occurred despite the blue sign on the boat correctly displaying South Korea’s name. “We can only apologize for the mistake made in an evening of so many moving parts,” Adams said in response to a question from a South Korean journalist.
The Korean peninsula has been divided into South Korea and North Korea since the end of World War II in 1945, and the confusion at the opening ceremony has heightened sensitivities around the issue. The South Korean Olympic Committee has asked the Paris Games organizers to ensure such errors do not happen again in future events.
