Unified_Korean_sporting_teams
Unified Korean sporting teams
Sporting teams representing the Korean Peninsula
A unified team of North and South Korea has played at certain sports competitions under the name Korea.
| Events | |
|---|---|
| IOC code | COR |
| NOCs | |
Other related appearances North Korea South Korea | |
| International medals | ||
|---|---|---|
| World Table Tennis Championships | ||
 | 1991 Chiba | Women's team |
 | 1991 Chiba | Women's singles |
 | 1991 Chiba | Men's singles |
| 1991 Chiba | Mixed doubles |
| 2018 Sweden | Women's team |
| Asian Games | ||
| 2018 Jakarta–Palembang | Women's Canoe TBR 500 meters |
| 2018 Jakarta–Palembang | Women's Canoe TBR 200 meters |
| 2018 Jakarta–Palembang | Men's Canoe TBR 1000 meters |
| ITTF World Tour | ||
| 2018 Korea Open | Mixed doubles |
| 2018 Korea Open | Men's doubles |
| Korea | |
| Hangul | 코리아 |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization | Koria |
| McCune–Reischauer | K'oria |
| IPA | /kʰo̞ɾi.a̠/ |
Since the conclusion of the Korean War, North and South Korea have existed as separate countries, with both claiming to be the sole legitimate government of all Korea. Both nations participate in international sport as individual countries; unified teams are exceptions to this practice rather than the norm. Joint teams have been seen as geopolitical gestures.[1]
A unified team under the name Korea (KOR) competed in 1991 World Table Tennis Championships and FIFA World Youth Championship with athletes from both North and South Korea. In 1991, the team used the Unification Flag and the anthem "Arirang".[2][3]
At the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang in South Korea, the Koreas marched together at the Parade of Nations under the Unification Flag.[4] A unified team played in the women's ice hockey tournament as Korea under the IOC country code COR, using the Unification Flag and the "Arirang" anthem. For other disciplines, the two Koreas retained separate national teams.[5] At the 2018 World Team Table Tennis Championships, the two Koreas entered separate teams, but when they were paired against each other at the quarter-final of the women's event, they negotiated instead to field a joint team for the semifinal, with the agreement of the International Table Tennis Federation.[6]
The two Koreas also initially agreed to form a unified Korea team at the 2018 East Asian Judo Championships in Mongolia.[7] Plans to compete under a unified flag were eventually scrapped due to a dispute over the flag.[8]
Four unified teams also participated in the international table tennis event, 2018 Korea Open. The unified Korean women's doubles team won gold, the first gold medal won by a unified Korean team since the 1991 World Table Tennis Championships, while the unified men's doubles team won bronze.[9]
FIBA allowed the participation of unified Korean team at the 2019 FIBA Women's Asia Cup.[10] However, no unified Korean team entered the basketball tournament.
Multi-sport events
2018 Winter Olympics
| Games | Athletes | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 2018 Pyeongchang | 35[5] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
2018 Asian Games
| Games | Athletes | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 2018 Jakarta–Palembang | 60 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Total | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |
2018 Asian Para Games
| Games | Athletes | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Jakarta | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Total | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Single sports events
World Table Tennis Championships
| Games | Athletes | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1991 Chiba | 22[11] | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
 2018 Sweden | 5[12] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | |
ITTF World Tour
| Games | Athletes | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Korea Open | 8[13] | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
Single sport team tournaments
FIFA World Youth Championship
| Games | Athletes | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1991 Portugal | 18[14] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
World Men's Handball Championship
| Games | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  2019 Denmark / Germany | Match for 21st place | 22nd of 24 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 177 | 216 | –39 |
| Total | 22nd place | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 177 | 216 | –39 |
In English, the team is named Korea, a term shared between North Korea and South Korea.
In East Asian languages where the names of the countries are significantly different (North Korea's 조선/朝鮮/Chosŏn versus South Korea's 한국/韓國/Hanguk), the team name uses an English transliteration. For example, during the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, the team used the name 코리아 Koria; and during the 1991 World Table Tennis Championships in Japan, the team used the name コリア Koria.
During the 2007 Asian Winter Games opening ceremony in China where North and South Korea marched together, their placard displayed only the English name "Korea", with no Chinese-language name present. All other teams' placards displayed an English-language name over a Chinese-language name. The parade order was unaffected as it used English alphabetical order. There were no announcers present to call out the names of any of the teams, only commentators.[15][16]
During the 2005 East Asian Games opening ceremony in Macau, North and South Korea also marched together and their placard displayed the English name "Korea".[17][18]
- "Unified Korean hockey team showed impact of sport on global issues". Global Sport Matters. 2019-09-27. Retrieved 2021-07-23.
- "제41회 세계탁구선수권대회 남북단일팀 구성·참가에 관한 합의서". Ministry of Unification (in Korean). 1991-02-12. Retrieved 2018-01-10.
- "제6회 세계청소년 축구선수권대회 남북단일팀 구성·참가에 관한 합의서". Ministry of Unification (in Korean). 1991-02-12. Retrieved 2018-01-10.
- Hyonhee Shin; Christine Kim (17 January 2018). "Koreas to form unified ice hockey team, march together in Olympics". Reuters. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- "Unified Korean Olympic Team to march at Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018". International Olympic Committee. 20 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- "Table Tennis: Koreas form unified team at world championships". Reuters. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
- Young, Henry (6 June 2018). "Unified Korean team to fight at East Asian Judo Championships". CNN. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
- "Judo: South, North Korea cancel plans to compete as joint team". Kyodo News+. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- "Table tennis: Joint inter-Korea team beats China to win mixed doubles at Korea Open". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 2018-09-03. Retrieved 2018-08-28.
- Morgan, Liam (4 April 2019). "FIBA Central Board approve resolution for joint Korean team to compete at Women's Asia Cup". Inside the Games. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- "제41회 세계탁구선수권대회 단일팀 실무위원회 합의서". Ministry of Unification (in Korean). 1991-02-26. Retrieved 2018-01-10.
- "As one, Korea unified, the power of table tennis - International Table Tennis Federation". International Table Tennis Federation. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- "Unified Korean mixed doubles team cruises at int'l table tennis event". Yonhap News Agency. 18 July 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
- "제6회 세계청소년축구선수권대회 단일팀 실무위원회 합의서". Ministry of Unification (in Korean). 1991-02-26. Retrieved 2018-01-10.
- Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: Asian Winter Games 2007 Changchun – via YouTube.