Bungling Asian Games organisers play North Korean anthem for South

NAGOYA: Asian Games officials played the North Korean national anthem for the South Korean men's hockey team on Friday, subsequently apologizing for the error. The incident occurred prior to the Games' opening ceremony in Nagoya. South Korean officials expressed outrage over the most recent mishap before the Saturday opening ceremony.

South Korea defeated Bangladesh 5-0 earlier in the day, but before their match, North Korea's song played instead of their own anthem. The South Korean players, who had lined up to hear their national anthem, appeared puzzled. Organizers then played Bangladesh's anthem before playing the South Korean anthem later, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency.

However, the referee ordered players from both sides to shake hands and prepare to play before the anthem ended, the agency reported. A stadium announcer apologized for the blunder, but South Korean coach Min Tae-seok was highly displeased. "This is a really serious problem," he stated. When they protested, they said, "We're sorry.

It wasn't that it wasn't prepared; there was a mistake on the part of those responsible for playing it." "But this is something that simply should never happen." A South Korean Olympic Committee official said they were investigating the incident to verify the facts. The Games' preparations have been marred by complaints from teams about the quality and quantity of accommodations. Some teams were stranded at the airport for up to six hours upon arrival this week.