The Korea Herald

지나쌤

N. Korea welcomed into Rio athletes' village

By 임정요

Published : Aug. 1, 2016 - 09:16

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North Korea on Sunday entered the athletes' village for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in a modest ceremony, with only the country's officials on hand.

North Korea and Uganda were welcomed into the athletes' quarters for the Aug. 5-21 Olympics. However, none of North Korea's 31 athletes, competing in nine sports, attended the occasion. Yun Song-bom, head of the North's delegation, was one of 16 officials present.

One North Korean official said the athletes were still jet-lagged and their training schedules kept them from coming to the athletes' village.

North Korea will be represented in athletics, swimming, weightlifting and artistic gymnastics, among others.

Yun declined to specify North Korea's medal target, only saying, "We didn't come here without a goal."

At the 2012 London Olympics, North Korea captured four gold medals -- three from weightlifting -- and two bronze medals to finish 20th in the standings. (Yonhap)