A little-known North Korean table tennis duo 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 Ri started the tournament as the lowest-ranked team — 16th.

Sports in North Korea are, in the words of state media, “by no means someone’s hobby or leisure time activity” but instead “a matter of expressing one’s patriotism.” The Olympics have also provided opportunities for the DPRK to engage the world, most notably