Lindberg Downplays Korean Crisis on PyeongChang 2018 Preparations

(ATR) Amid reports of rising tensions between North and South Korea, PyeongChang 2018 Coordination Commission chair Gunilla Lindberg tells Around the Rings she has "no special concerns" about Olympic preparations.

North Korea’s closure of the joint-Korean Kaesong industrial zone, billed as a symbol of co-operation between the two Koreas, and reports that Kim Jong-un’s regime may be preparing to carry out a nuclear test were condemned Monday by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

But the IOC member from Sweden told ATR that she was not worried about any impact on preparations for the 2018 Winter Olympics or that the North’s actions threatened the Games themselves.

"I am sure we have a situation in 2018 that is better than we have now," she said Monday.

"We had a lot of tensions in 2010 as well."

Despite the turbulent times on the Korean peninsula at the time, PyeongChang went on to win hosting rights in Durban in 2011.

Lindberg claimed that as PyeongChang 2018 preparations gained momentum and as awareness of the Games grew, they could "help the peace process...that is what sport is for, especially the Olympic Movement".

She added: "We believe the Olympics is something for good and brings people together. PyeongChang might have a good effect on that."

The PyeongChang 2018 organizing committee downplayed the escalation in tensions between North and South.

"At the moment we have nothing particular to say about the current situation in Korea and on the 2018 Winter Olympics," Dong Hoo Moon, vice president and secretary general of PyeongChang 2018, told ATR.

He added: "We have not observed any significant military activities in the Gangwon province.

"We have not provided any information concerning this to the IOC and neither do we have any inquiries from them."

In January, IOC president Jacques Rogge – on his first visit to the Korean Olympic host city – was asked about the possibility of the IOC taking steps to ensure the participation of North Korea in the PyeongChang Games.

At the time, he said that was "not on the table" and refused to speculate further. North Korea did not compete at the Seoul Olympics.

Rogge said his first impressions of Pyeongchang met his expectations and made a point of commenting on the quality of venues for the Games that were already in use. "It’s a nice scene, a modern concept of winter sports and they will be good Games," he said.

Reported by Mark Bisson

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