Pyeongchang
Let Everyone Shine: South Korea To Abolish Decades-Long Disability Rating System
The Winter Paralympic Games, ending on Sunday, Mar. 18, have received generally positive, albeit less, fanfare than its Olympic counterpart. But outside the Paralympics, interest in the actual quality of life for disabled people is still low. Recently, the South Korean government finally proposed to remove the long-contested rating system
Pyeongchang Olympics' Funniest Moments: There's A Lot of Curling
There was that time a guy from Australia impersonated Kim Jong-un in front of North Korean cheerleaders. Or when P.F. Chang’s — not Pyeongchang — got massive, unintended publicity on an American TV station. Then there is an entire ecosystem of funny South Korean memes
Pyeongchang Olympics: What to Make of North Korea’s Switching Tactics
Editor’s Note: For better or worse, the Pyeongchang Olympics has become famous as much for politics as for sports since North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed to send a delegation at the last minute. The question of what this all means is not easy to answer. The
"Olympics Fairies": Do the Faces of S. Korea Need to be Pretty Women?
South Korea’s young female placard bearers, officially labeled “placard agents,” made quite an impression at the opening ceremony of Pyeongchang Winter Olympics on Feb. 9. Their conventional good looks, with tall, slim figures and spectacularly designed dresses got plenty of social media users excited. Local media eDaily
What is North Korea Saying About the Olympics?
South Korea’s news outlets have had plenty to write about in the last few days. On top of the drama of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, North Korea’s last-minute decision to send a delegation, including none other than Kim Jong-un’s sister Kim Yo-jong, has led to a flurry
Chocolate Dessert Sends Netizens into Meltdown
Everyone likes a surprise. And when you’re a leading celebrity gourmet charged with designing a special dessert for a VIP Olympic reception, you want your surprise to be a good one. Unfortunately for well-known South Korean food critic Hwang Kyo-ik, somebody blew his surprise to the media a
Muslim Prayer Room Plan Scuppered by Islamophobes
Plans to build a mobile prayer room for Muslim visitors to Pyeongchang Winter Olympics have been scrapped after a strong backlash from local religious activists. Kim Yeong-ju of Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) told Korea Exposé that the government’s top tourist body had originally planned to place a Muslim
Why Are South Koreans "Meh" About North Korea in the Olympics?
#Olympics: Why are some South Koreans “meh” about North Korea’s presence? Sports diplomacy? Symbolic peace gestures? Sure, it’s not the first time North and South Korea have done all this. But remember, the last time the two even communicated was in February 2016. At
Pyeongchang: Halal Food for Athletes But Not Regular Visitors?
Muslim athletes will now be able to get halal food at Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, after official caterer Shinsegae Food received halal certification from the Korea Muslim Federation (KMF) on Jan. 29 for its cafeteria at the athlete’s village. But for regular spectators and tourists, it remains unclear if and
N. Korea's Olympics Proposal Undermines U.S. Hawks
At a scholarly conference on international politics and security I attended early December in the U.S., many an opinion was proffered on the state of geopolitics in Northeast Asia. But one dominant view, expressed at least privately by a number of scholars, was that the Donald Trump administration is
Good Luck Finding a Bed During the Pyeongchang Olympics
The Olympic motto is “Citius, Altius, Fortius,” Latin for “faster, higher, stronger.” It appears that the hoteliers and guesthouse owners of Pyeongchang, the mountain town where South Korea will host the 2018 Winter Olympics this winter, have been applying the second of these principles to their prices with a vengeance.
What the Puck? South Korea Sells Nationality for Winter Olympic Glory
On Tuesday, South Korean footballer Lee Seung-woo scored a stunning goal to help his national team defeat Argentina 2-1 in a FIFA U-20 World Cup match. Lee is in his first year playing for FC Barcelona Juvenil A, and has even caught the attention of Argentinian legend Diego Maradona, who