남북•IOC 스위스에서 '3자 회동', 도쿄올림픽 남북 단일팀 결론
The sports ministers from the Seoul and Pyeongyang are meeting with the International Olympic Committee president in Switzerland.
Expectations are high talks will lead to more joint events and inter-Korean squads being formed.
Won Jung-hwan fills us in on some of the expected topics.
Sports chiefs from the two Koreas are meeting with IOC head Thomas Bach to discuss further inter-Korean sporting ties in the future.
They are discussing the fielding of joint teams at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics,… as well as a bid to co-host the 2032 Summer Olympics.
On Thursday,… South Korean officials met separately with the IOC president to discuss unified Olympic teams for next year.
And Lee Kee-heung, head of the South Korean sporting body, has said the two sides are likely to combine teams in women's basketball, women's field hockey, rowing and judo in Tokyo next year.
However, he also stated that the meeting on Friday could lead to joint teams in other sports too,… mentioning table tennis and handball as two possible areas for cooperation.
One other topic at Friday's meeting is the recent decision by the World Anti-Doping Agency to declare North Korea 'non-compliant' with the World Anti-Doping Code.
Last September, the Agency said it would declare North Korea non-compliant if the regime did not resolve problems in the implementation of its testing program within four months. But the deadline passed in January without any action from North Korea,… resulting in the regime becoming 'non-compliant'.
That recent decision could limit North Korean athletes' participation at international events including the Olympics,… possibly hindering the fielding of joint teams at Tokyo 2020.
The three-way meeting will give North Korea the chance to offer further explanation and hopefully find a resolution to the matter so that the two Koreas can continue their efforts to compete together in the global sporting arena.
Won Jung-hwan, Arirang News.