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On July 27, the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony was criticized worldwide for wrongfully introducing South Korea. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach apologized to South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol for accidentally introducing the country's team as North Korean.
The Guardian reported that during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics, athletes from South Korea cruised along the Seine River in the French capital. As the team entered waving their national flag, the commentator misidentified the athletes and announced them as the "Democratic People's Republic of Korea Team" in both French and English.
The IOC President apologized for the mishap and said:
"We deeply apologize for the mistake that occurred when introducing the Korean team during the opening ceremony broadcast." (The Guardian reported).
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Netizens were stunned to see such a big mishap at the 2024 Paris Olympics and the incident received criticism globally. Since the two nations are still at war, netizens voiced their dissatisfaction on X.
"Oops! There was a little mix-up with South Korea's name during the Olympic parade. The organizers called it the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Did anyone else notice?" one X user wrote.
"How do the announcers at an international event like the Olympics mess up this badly? In both French and English South Korea (Republic of Korea) was referred to as Democratic People's Republic of Korea, which is North Korea...how do you even mess that up?" another X user wrote.
"South Korea wrongly introduced as North Korea at the Olympics! This Olympics is the worst! The robberies, the opening, the mistakes all the problems!" a person said.
Others called out the organizers of 2024 Paris Olympics for their alleged "ignorance and lack of basic world understanding."
"It's honestly shocking that such an unforgivable mistake could ever happen again at the Olympics. Introducing South Korea as North Korea is such a deep insult that demonstrates complete ignorance and lack of basic world understanding. Deeply shameful and embarrassing," another X user expressed shock.
"How hard is it to differentiate south korea and north korea when their flag is so different?" one fan remarked.
"Didn't Murphy's Law stated that what can go wrong will go wrong? This Olympics is a perfect example of this law," another netizen retorted.
South Korean President's office issues warning to IOC for its 2024 Paris Olympics mishap
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of South Korea declared that it would lodge a formal official protest with the French government. Al Jazeera reported that South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol's office was baffled and warned the IOC to avoid such errors in the future.
Furthermore, South Korea's Olympic committee contacted the Paris Games organizers directly to stop similar occurrences from happening again. The IOC spokesperson, Mark Adams, conveyed apologies for making "an operational mistake" and said:
"An operational mistake was made. We can only apologize, in an evening of so many moving parts, that this mistake was made."
The 2024 Paris Olympics began on July 27, 2024 (KST) and will be concluded on August 11, 2024. Moreover, on July 15, BTS' Kim Seok-jin represented South Korea at the Torch Relay as one of the honorable torchbearers.
