"Where Are Our Athletes?"... Controversy Over 'Han Passing' at Tokyo Olympics Closing Ceremony

On the 8th, at the closing ceremony of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics held at the National Stadium in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Jeon Woong-tae, the bronze medalist in modern pentathlon from South Korea, entered holding the Taegeukgi.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] During the broadcast of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics closing ceremony, the Korean delegation was not shown, raising suspicions of so-called Korean 'passing'. Viewers also expressed disappointment that the Korean athletes were not featured on the broadcast screen.

On the 8th at 8 p.m., a total of 34 people, including four modern pentathlon athletes led by Jeon Woongtae and 30 officials, participated in the closing ceremony held at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium in Japan. Jeon Woongtae, who was the first Korean to win a medal in modern pentathlon, served as the flag bearer for the closing ceremony.

Unlike the opening ceremony, the order of entry was not fixed for the closing ceremony, so each country's delegation freely appeared in the stadium waving their national flags.

On the 8th, at the closing ceremony of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics held at the National Stadium in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Jeon Woongtae, the bronze medalist in modern pentathlon from South Korea, entered holding the Taegeukgi. [Image source=Yonhap News]

However, Jeon Woongtae was not shown on the broadcast screen. When the camera filming the flag bearers of each country was on Korea's entrance, it switched to a full shot of the entire stadium.

Also, in scenes where athletes from various countries danced together, Korean athletes were not visible. Relatedly, the broadcast commentators said, "We want to see the Korean athletes, but they are not appearing on the screen."

Netizens also raised critical voices about this. They responded with comments such as, "They repeatedly showed Australian and Japanese athletes, but when Korean athletes appeared, it seemed like the camera was deliberately turned away," "Since this is a global event like the Olympics, Japan needs to show a mature attitude," "Other countries' athletes were shown a lot, but not a single Korean athlete was shown," and "I am not even sure if our athletes participated in the closing ceremony."

Meanwhile, Korea won 6 gold medals, 4 silver medals, and 10 bronze medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, ranking 16th overall.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.