After the award ceremony in the mixed competition, South Korean table tennis player Lim Jonghoon took a smartphone and took a special photo with the opponents from North Korea and China. South Korea had won bronze, China had prevailed against North Korea in the final.
While North Korean Ri Jong Sik was initially rather reserved, his mixed partner Kim Kum Yong beamed and proudly showed her medal. In another photo, Lim Jonghoon stood directly in front of the North Korean team. For North Korea, it was the first Olympic medal since 2016. The country did not compete in Tokyo in 2021 due to the corona pandemic.
Wide media coverage
In South Korea, the joint selfie sparked a wide media response. The left-leaning daily Hankyoreh wrote of a “sensational scene”. The action provoked mixed reactions on social media. “I hope that no North Korean player is harmed by this photo and this Internet article,” commented one user on the online platform “Naver”, alluding to the rigid ideological control in isolated North Korea. Another said: “It’s nice to see North and South Korean players smiling together.”
