North Korea wins first Olympic medal in 8 years with fairytale table tennis run



News North Korea wins first Olympic medal in 8 years with fairytale table tennis run Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong defeated one higher-ranked opponent after another en route to silver in mixed doubles event Joe Smith July 31, 2024 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON North Korea’s Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong (center) posing for a selfie with South Korea’s Lim Jong-hoon and Shin Yu-bin, and China’s Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha \| Image: World Table Tennis via X (July 30, 2024) A little-known North Korean table tennis duo has capped a fairytale run at the Summer Games in Paris by winning their country’s first Olympic medal in eight years, bringing home silver in the mixed doubles event. Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong entered the competition as the lowest-ranked team but vanquished one higher-ranked opponent after another to make it to the final, where they lost to favorites Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha of China by a score of 4-2 (11-6, 7-11, 11-8, 11-5, 7-11, 11-8). A little-known North Korean table tennis duo has capped a fairytale run at the Summer Games in Paris by winning their country’s first Olympic medal in eight years, bringing home silver in the mixed doubles event. Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong entered the competition as the lowest-ranked team but vanquished one higher-ranked opponent after another to make it to the final, where they lost to favorites Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha of China by a score of 4-2 (11-6, 7-11, 11-8, 11-5, 7-11, 11-8). Try unlimited access Only $1 for four weeks Unlimited access to all of NK News: reporting, investigations, analysis Year-one discount if you continue past $1 trial period The NK News Daily Update, an email newsletter to keep you in the loop Searchable archive of all content, photo galleries, special columns Contact NK News reporters with tips or requests for reporting Get unlimited access to all NK News content, including original reporting, investigations, and analyses by our team of DPRK experts. Subscribe now All major cards accepted. No commitments – you can cancel any time. © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. Get the Daily Update Start your day with the North Korea stories that matter most – as selected by And how should we address you in correspondence? One more step! Please check your inbox, for an email we just sent you, and click on the confirmation message in it to get subscribed to our Daily News Update. Trending

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North Korea wins first Olympic medal in 8 years with fairytale table tennis run

Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong defeated one higher-ranked opponent after another en route to silver in mixed doubles event

Joe Smith July 31, 2024

North Korea wins first Olympic medal in 8 years with fairytale table tennis run

North Korea’s Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong (center) posing for a selfie with South Korea’s Lim Jong-hoon and Shin Yu-bin, and China’s Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha | Image: World Table Tennis via X (July 30, 2024)

A little-known North Korean table tennis duo has capped a fairytale run at the Summer Games in Paris by winning their country’s first Olympic medal in eight years, bringing home silver in the mixed doubles event.

Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong entered the competition as the lowest-ranked team but vanquished one higher-ranked opponent after another to make it to the final, where they lost to favorites Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha of China by a score of 4-2 (11-6, 7-11, 11-8, 11-5, 7-11, 11-8).

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