hankyoreh

staff photographer)

“Hello and welcome!” A dozen or so members of pro-unification groups were waiting outside of the terminal at the Yangyang International Airport holding a pamphlet emblazoned with the Unification Flag and the words, “We are one.” The airport was packed with hundreds of people – officials from South Korea’s Unification Ministry and Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; domestic reporters; and foreign correspondents.

Within five minutes, the 32 North Korean athletes led by North Korean Vice Sports Minister Won Gil-woo boarded the vehicles prepared by South Korea and left the airport. The North Korean contingent remained silent, simply smiling without responding to reporters’ questions. “I would like to greet the people of the south on behalf of their compatriots in the north,” said Won, who spoke briefly to reporters before boarding a vehicle. South Korea had not prepared any special welcome event, and the police cordon around the North Koreans was three officers deep.

Members of North Korea’s athletic delegation wave upon entering the Gangneung Olympic Village in Gangwon Province following their arrival at Yangyang Airport on Feb. 1. (by Park Jong-shik

North Korea’s main group of athletes competing in the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics set foot on South Korean soil at 7:10 pm on Feb. 1, emerging from the international departures area of Yangyang International Airport in Gangwon Province one hour after their plane touched down. They had boarded a charter flight operated by Asiana Airlines at 5:10 pm at Kalma International Airport in Wonsan and arrived at Yangyang Airport at 6:09 pm.

After passing through the crowd of reporters, North Korea’s athletes, grouped by their respective events (figure skating, short track skating, alpine skiing and cross-country skiing) boarded one large bus and four 25-seat minibuses provided by South Korea. They were then transported to the Gangneung Olympic Village, where they received their accreditation cards and were admitted to the village.

North Korean figure skaters Ryom Tae-ok (left) and Kim Ju-sik enter South Korea through Yangyang Airport with other members of the North Korean delegation on Feb. 1. (Photo Pool)

At 2 pm on Feb. 1, the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics organizing committee kicked off the festivities by holding simultaneous official openings for the Pyeongchang Olympic Village and the Gangneung Olympic Village. While the opening ceremony of the Olympics itself will not be held until Feb. 9, groups of athletes from around the world moved into the villages on Feb. 1. The South Korean athletic contingent is scheduled to officially enter the villages on Feb. 7, but alpine skiers, cross-country skiers, and ski jumpers got to check into the villages on Feb. 1 ahead of the rest.

Until now, the 12 arenas where the Olympic events will take place – including the Jeongseon and Yongpyong Alpine Centers – have been locked tight, but on Feb. 1 they were opened up so that athletes from various countries can get in last minute training as the race for the gold gets underway. The North Korean flag was fluttering on its flagpole, which had been empty until the day before, even though North Korea is one of the 92 countries participating in the Pyeongchang Olympics.

This was the last puzzle piece needed to turn the Pyeongchang Olympics into the Peace Olympics. The flags of other countries had all been raised one day before the villages opened, according to the International Olympic Committee’s standard practice, but the North Korean flag was raised on the day of the official opening to ensure that the National Security Act was not violated, the organizing committee explained. This is the fourth time that the North Korean flag has been raised at international sporting events in South Korea, starting with the 2002 Asian Games in Busan. The last time the flag was raised was four years ago, during the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon.

“We’ve reached an agreement for Gangwon Province to compete in a marathon being held in Pyongyang in April and in a children’s football tournament in Pyongyang in June,” said Gangwon Province governor Choi Moon-soon after the villages were officially opened.

By Kim Kyung-moo and Lee Chan-young, staff reporters

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