North and South Korea improve relationship with basketball
Relations between North and South Korea continued to rebound on Wednesday as the ​two longtime foes engaged in some basketball diplomacy for the first time in 15 years, according to a report.
Teams named Peace and Prosperity made up of a mix of North and South Korean athletes played at a 12,000-seat gymnasium in the North’s capital, Pyongyang.
The women’s Prosperity team managed to pull out a 103-102 win while the men’s teams ended up even at 102-102 after a last-second game-tying 3-pointer, the South Korean Yonhap news agency said.
A capacity crowd cheered the teams and waved signs that said “Welcome” and “We are passionately rooting for you,” the report said.
More games are scheduled Thursday​ before the South Koreans return home Friday​.
​While basketball is North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s favorite sport — he’s invited former ​NBA star Dennis Rodman to the country several times — he wasn’t seen at the games and it was unclear if he would attend Thursday’s games.
It’s the fourth time the two countries have met on the basketball court and the first since October 2003.
The games were arranged after ​Kim suggested them to South Korean President Moon Jae-in during their summit in April on the demilitarized zone separating the two countries.
The North also sent athletes and a delegation led by Kim’s sister to the Winter Olympics held in February in South Korea.