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Koreas March Together at Universiade Opens

2003-08-22

DAEGU - Athletes from South and North Korea marched hand-in-hand before a boisterous crowd as the 22nd Summer Universiade got underway on Thursday in a colorful opening ceremony in Daegu.

"Arirang," a national traditional folksong, was played and the cheers continued as they strolled around the track, waving to the crowd.

An audience of about 53,000 erupted in roaring applause at the main stadium of the Universiade when athletes from the two Koreas marched into the stadium together, led by the Korean peninsula flag symbolizing a unified Korea.

Hundreds of troops and police officers were deployed in and around the stadium as helicopters patrolled above amid heightened alert over fears of a terrorist attack against the Northern delegation.

Despite the worsening political conflict following the North's delay in their arrival in the South, Daegu residents were generally amicable toward their northern brethren.

It was the fourth time the two Koreas have made a joint march at an international sporting event since the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Bahrain, Djibouti, Aruba and St. Kitts & Nevis made their Universiade debuts and were among the nearly 7,200 athletes and officials from 172 countries and territories taking part in the festival, which will continue through Aug. 31.

The final torchbearer Lee Jin-taek, who won the high-jump gold medal at the 1997 Universiade in Sicily, Italy, and the 2002 Asian Games in Hiroshima, lit the cauldron after riding a lift to the top of the stadium.

Declaring the Universiade had officially begun, President Roh Moo-hyun thanked the participants and all the people who have strived to make the games a success and said he hoped the best for the games.

Daegu Mayor Cho Hae-nyoung, president of the event's organizing committee, said in a welcoming address that the city aims to be the friendly host of a massive global festival that will help realize the dream of world peace crossing all boundaries and differences, including ideology, religion, race and culture.

The event is special for the two Koreas as "Daegu will be an impressive site where college athletes from the Koreas will get together and prove the oneness of all the people of the only divided country in the world," Cho said.

George Killian, president of the International University Sports Federation (FISU), extended his best wishes to those who traveled from the four corners of the globe to compete in Daegu in the Universiade, praising the efforts of the organizers.

"It is amazing to have North Koreans in Daegu, my hometown," Lee Mi-jin, a Daegu resident, said, who came to attend the opening ceremony.

"This is what sports are for. We hope the Universiade will transcend all political and ideological conflicts that remain on the peninsula."

Daegu is in a festive mood as scores of cultural events were also held around the city. However, the talk of the town was still the participation of North Korea, which earlier threatened to boycott the event due to security concerns.

Source : www.korea.net