Wrong anthem: North Korea played for South Korea at Asian Games — SkimNews
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- Asian Games organisers played North Korea's national anthem for South Korea's men's hockey team in Japan, with a stadium announcer later apologising for the mistake.
- South Korea thrashed Bangladesh 5-0 but players looked confused as the sequence ran North Korea's anthem, then Bangladesh's, then South Korea's correct one, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency.
- South Korea coach Min Tae-seok called it "a really serious problem," saying organisers blamed "a mistake on the part of those responsible for playing it" and that it "simply should never happen."
- North Korea's national anthem and other state symbols are banned in South Korea, and the two countries remain technically at war after the 1950-53 conflict ended without a peace treaty.
- The Asian Games build-up drew separate accommodation complaints: a South Korean basketball player posted video of a leaking pipe and soaked floor in his room, and some teams were stranded at the airport for up to six hours upon arrival.
Why it matters: The anthem swap is more than a logistical slip because North Korean state symbols are legally banned in South Korea and the two Koreas remain technically at war — turning a music cue into a diplomatic incident. It also compounds pre-existing Asian Games gripes over leaking-room accommodation and six-hour airport stranding that have already gone public before Saturday's official opening.
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