The North Korean delegation celebrated its achievement at the Winter Asian Games, waving its national flag and beaming with joy after winning its first silver medal in 22 years.
Ryom Tae Ok and Han Kum Chol competed in the figure skating pairs free skating event held on Wednesday at the Heilongjiang Ice Training Center in Harbin, China. With no deductions, they earned a technical element score (TES) of 58.13 points and a program component score (PCS) of 54.07 points, bringing their total to 112.20 points. Adding this to their short program score of 56.68 points from the previous day, they achieved an overall score of 168.88 points, finishing second among six teams.
This marks North Korea’s second consecutive medal in figure skating pairs, following their bronze at the 2017 Sapporo Games.
Ryom Tae Ok, who won bronze in 2017 alongside Kim Ju Sik, has now claimed medals in two consecutive tournaments with a different partner.
North Korea’s last silver medal at this event was in the women’s 3,000-meter short track relay at the 2003 Aomori Games, so this is a significant feat after 22 years.
As North Korea’s competitiveness in recent Winter Asian Games has waned, they sent a smaller team this time—just three athletes (two in figure skating pairs and one in singles), down from seven(five in short track and two in figure skating pairs) in the 2017 Sapporo Games. However, they achieved maximum efficiency by securing a silver medal.
With this silver medal, North Korea has moved to sixth place in the current games’ overall standings.
The North Korean delegation, which had previously avoided interactions with the media and maintained a reserved demeanor, was visibly joyful during the award ceremony.
Ryom Tae Ok and Han Kum Chol held hands as they stepped onto the podium, waving to the audience and relishing their silver medal. They also posed for group photos with medalists from Uzbekistan and Japan, standing shoulder to shoulder.
After the ceremony, the North Korean athletes paraded around the rink, waving a large national flag. They openly embraced one another and freely expressed their emotions. The athletes also took photos with volunteers they had bonded with during the competition.
At a post-match press conference, Ryom Tae Ok smiled brightly and shared her determination, saying, “I will steadily advance toward Olympic gold.”
