The Hindu : Sport / Olympic Games : North, South Korea to parade together at Olympics

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Saturday, Jul 03, 2004

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Sport - Olympic Games

North, South Korea to parade together at Olympics

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JULY 2. The International Olympic Committee has confirmed that the delegations of North and South Korea will parade together at the opening ceremony of the Athens Olympic Games on August 13.

The intention of the two NOCs to march under the same flag had already been discussed at a meeting with the IOC President, Jacques Rogge, held in Athens in February.

An IOC press release which gave this information to the world media on Friday said, "Four years after Sydney, where the delegations from South and North Korea march for the first time together under the same flag at the opening ceremony, the athletes from the two Koreas will demonstrate yet again that sport and the Olympic ideal can serve as an instrument to building a peaceful and better world."

The release also quoted the IOC President as saying; "This joint march will be one of the highlights of the opening ceremony of the Athens Games in a few weeks' time. It shows that sport can unite and promote peace. It is wonderful to see the two NOCs putting the Olympic values into practice in such a demonstrable way."

Incidentally, the two Koreas also had marched together under the same pennant in both the opening and closing ceremonies of the 14th Asian Games held in Busan, South Korea, in 2002.

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