North Korea’s Ryom Tae Ok, left, and Kim Ju Sik, perform during a Pairs Figure Skating training session prior to the 2018 Winter Olympics in Gangneung, South Korea, Saturday, Feb. 3, 2018. (Felipe Dana/Associated Press)
GANGNEUNG, South Korea — A pair of smiling North Korean skaters has carried out lifts and death spirals during practices ahead of the Winter Olympics, drawing applause from spectators at Gangneung Ice Arena.
The duo, Ryom Tae Ok and Kim Ju Sik, is the focus of intense media attention as they were the only North Korean athletes who were initially qualified to compete in the Pyeongchang Games before their Olympic committee missed a confirmation deadline.
The International Olympic Committee later allowed 22 North Korean athletes, including Ryom and Kim, to participate in the games in special entries given to the North as it worked out a set of Olympics-related rapprochement deals with South Korea.
After her training Saturday, Ryom told reporters “I feel good.”
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