S. Korean, N. Korean basketball players reunited for Asian Games

JINCHEON, South Korea, Aug. 2 (Yonhap) -- Less than a month after they got together for friendly games, women's basketball players from South and North Korea have been reunited here for the Asian Games.

There will be nine South Koreans and three North Koreans competing on the unified team at the Aug. 18-Sept. 2 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia. They started their joint training on Wednesday at the Jincheon National Training Center in Jincheon, 90 kilometers south of Seoul, and opened their practice to pool reporters at the same venue on Thursday.

Three North Korean players -- center Ro Suk-yong, guard Jang Mi-gyong and guard Kim Hye-yon -- plus assistant coach Jong Song-sim arrived in South Korea on Sunday. The South Koreans returned from an international tournament in Taiwan on Monday and resumed training two days later.

The Korean players are already familiar with one another, as they met during friendly matches in Pyongyang on July 4 and 5.

The Korea Basketball Association (KBA) announced its 12-player roster on Wednesday, though the status of South Korean center Park Ji-su, currently in her first season with the Las Vegas Aces in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), remains up in the air.

Meanwhile, the ones who made it to Jincheon were hard at work Thursday. South Korean Sports Minister Do Jong-whan also paid a visit to deliver a message of support and encouragement.

"I'd like to welcome everyone from the North, and I am happy to see that South and North Korea have come together to compete as one team," he told the players. "The people are all behind you. I want to thank you for leading the way toward prosperity and harmony."

Jong, the North Korean coach, told Do that the players from both sides had become quick friends during their previous meeting in Pyongyang, and there was no awkwardness when they were reunited this week.

"We may not have much time left until the Asian Games, but we can win the gold medal if we can all come together," Jong said. "We'll show the world how strong we can be and give our 70 million people something to cheer about."

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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