North Korea's national women's soccer team coach Ri Yoo-il cut off a South Korean reporter's words at a press conference and drew a line that he would not take questions unless he called the national name correctly. 안전놀이터
On Thursday, Ri held a press conference ahead of the final preliminary match for women's soccer at the 2024 Paris Olympics against Japan. While answering questions from reporters on the day, Ri looked firm as the South Korean reporter kept asking. When the reporter asked, "I wonder where North Korean women's soccer power comes from," Ri raised his hand and said, "No, I'm sorry."
"You have to call the national anthem accurately. We are the team of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, not the North Korean team," he said firmly. "If you don't call the national anthem accurately, we won't take any questions." Ri's comment froze the mood on the spot for a few seconds and silenced for several seconds. When a South Korean reporter asked for understanding and asked again, "Then, would it be okay to ask questions without calling you?" Ri finally gave his answer, "The driving force is the desire to shine in the national anthem that we represent, to repay the expectations of our family and friends as players, to develop and contribute to soccer at least a little bit."
It is not the first time that North Korea is sensitive to the term "North Korea." The team also made the same appearance several times at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. "We are the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, not the North," Lee told a news conference after an inter-Korean match between the eight teams of women's soccer at the time. "We will not answer any questions unless we correct them." When a reporter mentioned "North Korea" even after the inter-Korean match in women's basketball, a North Korean official said, "Lee is Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Don't call him North Korea." However, the North was criticized for labeling the South Korean name "a puppet" (傀儡) on the Korean Central Television that broadcasted the Asian Games.
Meanwhile, the North Korean women's soccer team entered Japan through Haneda Airport in Tokyo on the 25th to play its final qualifying match for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The North Korean women's soccer team is scheduled to play its final qualifying match against Japan at 6:30 p.m. on the 28th at Tokyo National Stadium. "There are some players in Japan who have shown great performance in Europe and the world," Lee told a news conference. "I think Hasegawa is outstanding."