North Korea prepares for Asian Games campaign in Japan

By Kim Boram

NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 13 (Yonhap) -- North Korea is set to begin its Asian Games campaign as its women's football team will play its first group-stage match at the quadrennial sports competition in Japan later this week, organizers said Sunday.

North Korea sent a 188-member delegation to the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, which kicks off Saturday for a 16-day run, marking its first participation in an Asiad tournament on Japanese soil.

Its women's football team will spearhead North Korea's Asian Games campaign Monday at Nagai Stadium in Osaka against Bangladesh in Pool F, according to organizers.

The team will face Myanmar on Thursday before taking on South Korea on Sept. 21 in its final Pool F match.

The North Korean women's football team is one of the strongest gold medal contenders in Nagoya, led by key players including captain Kim Kyong-yong of Naegohyang Women's FC, which won the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Champions League.

The men's football team will take on China on Wednesday.

The North Korean football team arrived in Japan on Friday for their early matches, ahead of the arrival of the main delegation.

The Japanese government had banned North Korean nationals from entering the country as part of its own sanctions but lifted the ban for the Asian Games.

According to a pro-North Korea newspaper based in Japan, a total of 188 North Koreans, including 107 athletes, will participate in the Asian Games in Japan.

North Korea expects to win more medals in Nagoya than it did at the previous Asian Games in 2023 in China, when the reclusive country earned 11 golds, 18 silvers and 10 bronzes.

Pang Chol-mi is a strong gold medal hopeful in women's boxing after winning a bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics in the women's 54-kilogram class.

Song Kuk-hyang is eyeing a second consecutive gold medal in women's weightlifting, while gymnast An Chang-ok is also set to defend her titles in the vault and uneven bars events.