North_Korea_at_the_2016_Summer_Olympics
North Korea at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Sporting event delegation
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's tenth appearance at the Summer Olympics.
| North Korea at the 2016 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
| IOC code | PRK |
| NOC | Olympic Committee of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea |
| in Rio de Janeiro | |
| Competitors | 31 in 9 sports |
| Flag bearers | Choe Jon-wi[1] (opening) Yun Won-chol (closing) |
| Medals Ranked 34th |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
The Olympic Committee of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea sent the nation's smallest delegation to the Games since 2000. A total of 31 athletes, 11 men and 20 women, were selected for the North Korean team across nine different sports, marking the fourth straight Games to feature more female athletes than male.[2][3] North Korea did not register any of its entrants in boxing for the first time since 1972, but was represented in artistic gymnastics for the first time in eight years, after missing out of London 2012 due to a two-year suspension for age falsification.
Notable athletes on the North Korean roster included weightlifting champions Om Yun-chol (men's 56 kg) and Rim Jong-sim (women's 75 kg), twins Kim Hye-gyong and Kim Hye-song in the women's marathon, pistol shooter and three-time Olympian Kim Jong-su, and former gymnastics champion Hong Un-jong in the women's vault. Weightlifting rookie Choe Jon-wi was selected by the committee to lead the North Korean delegation as the flag bearer in the opening ceremony.[1][2]
North Korea left Rio de Janeiro with a total of seven medals (2 golds, 3 silver, and 2 bronze), signifying its most successful Olympic outcome based on the overall medal count, but falling short of the 12-medal target set by its sports commission.[4] Half of North Korea's medal haul was distributed to the weightlifters, while the rest to the competitors in artistic gymnastics, shooting, and table tennis. Among the medalists were Rim Jong-sim, who repeated her golden feat from London four years earlier in a heavier category, and double world champion Ri Se-gwang, who obtained the nation's first ever gymnastics title by a male after 24 years.[5][6]
| Medal | Name | Sport | Event | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Gold | Rim Jong-sim | Weightlifting | Women's 75 kg | 12 August |
| Gold | Ri Se-gwang | Gymnastics | Men's vault | 15 August |
 Silver | Om Yun-chol | Weightlifting | Men's 56 kg | 7 August |
| Silver | Choe Hyo-sim | Weightlifting | Women's 63 kg | 9 August |
| Silver | Kim Kuk-hyang | Weightlifting | Women's +75 kg | 14 August |
 Bronze | Kim Song-guk | Shooting | Men's 50 m pistol | 10 August |
| Bronze | Kim Song-i | Table tennis | Women's singles | 10 August |
One North Korean archer qualified for the women's individual recurve by obtaining one of the three Olympic places available from the 2015 Asian Archery Championships in Bangkok, Thailand.[7]
| Athlete | Event | Ranking round | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Final / BM | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Score | Seed | Opposition Score |
Opposition Score |
Opposition Score |
Opposition Score |
Opposition Score |
Opposition Score |
Rank | ||
| Kang Un-ju | Women's individual | 643 | 15 |  Nikitin (BRA)W 6–0 |
 Bjerendal (SWE)W 6–2 |
 Chang H-j (KOR)L 2–6 |
Did not advance | |||
North Korean athletes have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of three athletes in each event):[8][9]
- Key
- Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only
- Q = Qualified for the next round
- q = Qualified for the next round as a fastest loser or, in field events, by position without achieving the qualifying target
- NR = National record
- N/A = Round not applicable for the event
- Bye = Athlete not required to compete in round
- Track & road events
| Athlete | Event | Final | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | ||
| Pak Chol | Men's marathon | 2:15:27 | 27 |
| Kim Hye-gyong | Women's marathon | 2:28:36 | 11 |
| Kim Hye-song | 2:28:36 | 10 | |
| Kim Kum-ok | 2:38:24 | 49 | |
North Korean divers qualified for the following individual spots and synchronized teams at the 2016 Olympic Games by having achieved a top three finish from the 2015 World Championships.[10]
| Athlete | Event | Preliminaries | Semifinals | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | ||
| Kim Kuk-hyang | Women's 10 m platform | 263.20 | 25 | Did not advance | |||
| Kim Un-hyang | 289.45 | 18 Q | 343.70 | 5 Q | 357.90 | 7 | |
| Kim Kuk-hyang Kim Mi-rae |
Women's 10 m synchronized platform | — | 322.44 | 4 | |||
Artistic
North Korea has qualified one male and one female artistic gymnast each for of the following apparatus and all-around events through the 2015 World Championships.[11][12]
- Men
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Final | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apparatus | Total | Rank | Apparatus | Total | Rank | ||||||||||||
| F | PH | R | V | PB | HB | F | PH | R | V | PB | HB | ||||||
| Ri Se-gwang | Vault | — | 15.433 | — | 15.433 | 1 Q | — | 15.691 | — | 15.691 | | ||||||
- Women
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Final | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apparatus | Total | Rank | Apparatus | Total | Rank | ||||||||
| V | UB | BB | F | V | UB | BB | F | ||||||
| Hong Un-jong | Vault | 15.683 | — | 15.683 | 2 Q | 14.900 | — | 14.900 | 6 | ||||
| Floor | — | 12.533 | 12.533 | 71 | Did not advance | ||||||||
North Korea has qualified three judokas for each of the following weight classes at the Games. Hong Kuk-hyon and Kyong Sol were ranked among the top 22 eligible judokas for men and top 14 for women in the IJF World Ranking List of 30 May 2016, while Kim Sol-mi at women's extra-lightweight (48 kg) earned a continental quota spot from the Asian region as the highest-ranked North Korean judoka outside of direct qualifying position.[13]
| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Repechage | Final / BM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Rank | ||
| Hong Kuk-hyon | Men's −73 kg |  Duprat (FRA)L 000–100 |
Did not advance | ||||||
| Kim Sol-mi | Women's −48 kg | — |  Dolgova (RUS)L 000–001 |
Did not advance | |||||
| Sol Kyong | Women's −78 kg | — | Bye | Tcheuméo (FRA) L 000–100 |
Did not advance | ||||
North Korean shooters have achieved quota places for the following events by virtue of their best finishes at the 2014 and 2015 ISSF World Championships, the 2015 ISSF World Cup series, and Asian Championships, as long as they obtained a minimum qualifying score (MQS) as of March 31, 2016.[14]
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | ||
| Kim Jong-su | Men's 10 m air pistol | 575 | 27 | — | Did not advance | ||
| Men's 50 m pistol | 548 | 24 | — | Did not advance | |||
| Kim Song-guk | Men's 10 m air pistol | 577 | 17 | — | Did not advance | ||
| Men's 50 m pistol | 557 | 5 Q | — | 172.8 | | ||
| Jo Yong-suk | Women's 10 m air pistol | 381 | 12 | — | Did not advance | ||
| Women's 25 m pistol | 582 | 6 Q | 12 | 7 | Did not advance | ||
| Pak Yong-hui | Women's trap | 65 | 12 | Did not advance | |||
Qualification Legend: Q = Qualify for the next round; q = Qualify for the bronze medal (shotgun)
North Korea has fielded a team of three athletes into the table tennis competition at the Games. Kim Song I and 2012 Olympian Ri Myong-sun scored a second-stage draw victory each to book two of six remaining Olympic spots in the women's singles at the Asian Qualification Tournament in Hong Kong.[15]
Ri Mi-gyong was awarded the third spot to build the women's team for the Games by virtue of a top 10 national finish in the ITTF Olympic Rankings.[16]
| Athlete | Event | Preliminary | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Final / BM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Rank | ||
| Kim Song-i | Women's singles | Bye |  Grzybowska (POL)W 4–0 |
 Ishikawa (JPN)W 4–3 |
 Chen S-y (TPE)W 4–2 |
 Yu My (SIN)W 4–2 |
 Ding N (CHN)L 1–4 |
Fukuhara (JPN) W 4–1 |
| |
| Ri Myong-sun | Bye |  Lovas (HUN)W 4–1 |
 Solja (GER)W 4–0 |
Fukuhara (JPN) L 0–4 |
Did not advance | |||||
| Kim Song-i Ri Mi-gyong Ri Myong-sun |
Women's team | — |  Australia (AUS)W 3–0 |
China (CHN) L 0–3 |
did not advance | |||||
North Korean weightlifters have qualified a maximum of six men's and four women's quota places for the Rio Olympics based on their combined team standing by points at the 2014 and 2015 IWF World Championships. The team must allocate these places to individual athletes by 20 June 2016.
On 22 June 2016, the International Weightlifting Federation decided to strip one men's and one women's entry place each from North Korea to the Olympics because of "multiple positive cases" of doping throughout the qualifying period.[17][18]
- Men
| Athlete | Event | Snatch | Clean & jerk | Total | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||||
| Om Yun-chol | −56 kg | 134 | 2 | 169 | 2 | 303 | |
| Kim Myong-hyok | −69 kg | 157 | 3 | DNF | - | DNF | |
| Kwon Yong-gwang | 137 | 16 | 176 | 11 | 313 | 14 | |
| Choe Jon-wi | −77 kg | 153 | 8 | 190 | 8 | 343 | 8 |
- Women
| Athlete | Event | Snatch | Clean & jerk | Total | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||||
| Choe Hyo-sim | −63 kg | 105 | 3 | 143 | 2 | 248 | |
| Rim Jong-sim | −75 kg | 121 | 1 | 153 | 1 | 274 | |
| Kim Kuk-hyang | +75 kg | 131 | 1 | 175 | 2 | 306 | |
North Korea has qualified a total of four wrestlers for each of the following weight classes into the Olympic competition. Three of them finished among the top six to book an Olympic spot each in the men's freestyle 57 kg, men's Greco-Roman 59 kg, and women's freestyle 53 kg at the 2015 World Championships, while the other had claimed the remaining Olympic slot to round out the North Korean roster at the initial meet of the World Qualification Tournament in Ulaanbaatar.[19]
Key:
- VT – Victory by Fall.
- PP – Decision by Points – the loser with technical points.
- PO – Decision by Points – the loser without technical points.
- ST – Technical superiority – the loser without technical points and a margin of victory of at least 8 (Greco-Roman) or 10 (freestyle) points.
- Men's freestyle
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Repechage 1 | Repechage 2 | Final / BM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Rank | ||
| Yang Kyong-il | −57 kg | Higuchi (JPN) L 1–4 SP |
Did not advance |  Lachinau (BLR)W 3–1 PP |
 Bonne (CUB)L 1–4 SP |
Did not advance | 8 | ||
- Men's Greco-Roman
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Repechage 1 | Repechage 2 | Final / BM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Rank | ||
| Yun Won-chol | −59 kg | Bye |  Mahmoud (EGY)W 3–1 PP |
 Tasmuradov (UZB)L 0–4 ST |
Did not advance | 10 | |||
- Women's freestyle
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Repechage 1 | Repechage 2 | Final / BM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Opposition Result |
Rank | ||
| Kim Hyon-gyong | −48 kg | Dadasheva (RUS) L 1–3 PP |
Did not advance | 13 | |||||
| Jong Myong-suk | −53 kg |  Gallays (CAN)W 4–0 ST |
 Gün (TUR)W 4–0 ST |
 Maroulis (USA)L 1–3 PP |
Did not advance | Bye | Zhong Xc (CHN) L 1–3 PP |
Did not advance | 7 |
- "The Flagbearers for the Rio 2016 Opening Ceremony". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
- "N. Korea makes restrained entrance at Rio Games". The Korea Times. 6 August 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
- Taylor, Adam (10 August 2016). "The Olympics are tough for all athletes. For North Koreans, they're worse". The Washington Post. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
- Taylor, Julian (23 August 2016). "North Korean athletes fall short of Kim Jong-un's medal target in Rio Olympics". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
- "Weightlifter Rim Jong-sim wins N. Korea's 1st gold in Rio". Yonhap News Agency. 13 August 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
- "Rio 2016 Olympics: North Korea's Ri Se-gwang wins men's vault title". EuroSport. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
- "First Rio 2016 continental qualifier adds 5 more nations from Asia". World Archery Federation. 8 November 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- "iaaf.org – Top Lists". IAAF. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
- "IAAF Games of the XXX Olympiad – Rio 2016 Entry Standards" (PDF). IAAF. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
- "Rio 2016: Diving – Participating Athletes". FINA. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
- "Rio 2016 Olympic qualifiers in Men's Artistic Gymnastics: See the updated list!". FIG. 16 April 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- "Rio 2016 Olympic qualifiers in Women's Artistic Gymnastics: See the updated list!". FIG. 17 April 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- "IJF Officially Announces Qualified Athletes for Rio 2016 Olympic Games". International Judo Federation. 23 June 2016. Archived from the original on 4 August 2016. Retrieved 24 June 2016.
- "Quota Places by Nation and Number". www.issf-sports.org/. ISSF. 30 May 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
- Marshall, Ian (16 April 2016). "Strong Opposition Ended Earlier Hopes, Later DPR Korea and Thailand Enjoy Success". ITTF. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- "Team Quota Places for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games" (PDF). ITTF. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
- "Strong statement by the IWF Executive Board". International Weightlifting Federation. 22 June 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
- "Rio 2016 Weightlifting – List of Athletes by Bodyweight Category" (PDF). International Weightlifting Federation. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
- "Wrestling for Rio 2016". United World Wrestling. Archived from the original on 1 December 2016. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- "DPR Korea at the 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio2016.com)". Archived from the original on 26 August 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - North Korea at the 2016 Summer Olympics at SR/Olympics (archived)