MOSCOW, July 27 International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach apologized by phone to South Korean President Yun Seok-yeol for the incident during the presentation of the country's delegation at the opening ceremony of the Olympics in Paris.
On Friday, a parade of athletes was held on the Seine River. As a boat carrying athletes from South Korea passed, the announcer announced that the guests were athletes from the DPRK. It is reported that the subtitles of the broadcast indicated the name of the South Korean national team correctly. The DPRK team itself, which came out to the parade later, was also named correctly. After the incident, South Korean authorities were outraged and demanded a meeting with Bach. On Saturday, at a press conference, IOC Director of Communications Mark Adams apologized to the South Korean delegation for the incident.
«IOC President Thomas Bach spoke today with the President of the Republic of Korea, Yoon Seok-yeol. In this conversation, the IOC President sincerely apologized for the error made last night in the audio broadcast of the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris, in which the team of the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Korea was incorrectly identified. The issue has been recognized as a human error, for which the IOC deeply apologizes,» the IOC said in a statement.
Bach also congratulated the President of South Korea on the national team's first medal at the Games in Paris. On Saturday, the South Korean team won silver in the mixed 10m air rifle competition.
The Olympic Games are being held in Paris from July 26 to August 11. There will be 15 Russians competing in five sports at the Games: seven tennis players, three canoeists, three cyclists, one trampoline jumper and one swimmer. By decision of the IOC, they will compete in the capital of France as neutrals, without the Russian flag and anthem, and their awards will not be shown in the medal table.