(Olympics) N. Korea’s state media reports on Olympics opening

Pyongyang's state media on Sunday carried a brief dispatch on the opening of the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, a day after the 17-day competition kicked off. In what marked its first Summer Olympics appearance in eight years, 16 North Korean athletes registered to compete in seven sports, including wrestling, table tennis, boxing and gymnastics, according to the organizing committee for Paris 2024. "A distinctive opening ceremony unfolded at the Seine River," the Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper, said. "An Olympic committee delegation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, led by Sports Minister Kim Il-guk, also participated," it said, without elaborating on the athletes taking part. The North did not send a delegation to the Tokyo Olympics, while its borders remained closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The International Olympic Committee penalized Pyongyang for its no-show, and the North accordingly failed to go to the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Source: Yonhap News Agency