South Korea on Saturday expressed disappointment after its athletes were incorrectly introduced as North Korean at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics.

South Korea on Saturday expressed disappointment after its athletes were incorrectly introduced as North Korean at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. Seoul has sought an assurance from organisers that such blunders will not occur again.

The South Korean Sports ministry expressed “regret over the announcement during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics”.(X)

As the South Korean delegation rode a boat on the Seine River and entered the ceremony as the 48th participating nation, the announcer referred to the athletes as the “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” which is North Korea’s official name. It is referred to as “Republique populaire democratique de Coree” in French.

The Speaker repeated the same introduction for the North Korean delegation.

In an official statement, the South Korean Sports ministry expressed “regret over the announcement during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics, where the South Korean delegation was introduced as the North Korean team.”

The Sports Ministry has also directed the foreign ministry to “deliver a strong protest to the French side” on the matter.

Moreover, the South Korea’s National Olympic Committee intends to meet with the Paris Olympics Organising Committee to express their protest, seek measures to stop a repeat, and submit a formal letter of protest under the leader of their delegation.

Following South Korea’s protest, the IOC wrote in a post on their official Korean-language X account: “We deeply apologise for the mistake that occurred when introducing the South Korean team during the broadcast of the opening ceremony.”

Reacting to the blunder, one netizen wrote on X: “This is just as bad as Biden’s “Welcome Mr Putin” to Zelenskyy”.”

The blunder comes at a time when ties between North Korea  and South Korea have hit a new low with North strengthening its military ties with Russia and South sending K-pop and anti-regime messages via border loudspeakers and conducting live-fire exercises on border islands.