{"id":15791,"date":"2018-05-04T00:10:27","date_gmt":"2018-05-04T00:10:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/associatednews.us\/content\/2018\/05\/04\/north-south-korea-skip-table-tennis-match-against-each-other-and-vow-to-become-one\/"},"modified":"2018-05-04T00:10:27","modified_gmt":"2018-05-04T00:10:27","slug":"north-south-korea-skip-table-tennis-match-against-each-other-and-vow-to-become-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/associatednews.us\/content\/north-south-korea-skip-table-tennis-match-against-each-other-and-vow-to-become-one\/","title":{"rendered":"North, South Korea Skip Table Tennis Match Against Each Other And Vow To Become One"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Colin Dwyer<\/a><\/span> <\/p>\n

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\n The South Korean and North Korean teams receive an ovation Thursday at the World Team Table Tennis Championships in Halmstad, Sweden. The players elected to form a unified Korean team for the tournament’s semifinal round.<\/p>\n

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TT News Agency\/Reuters<\/p>\n

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TT News Agency\/Reuters<\/p>\n

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More than four decades after pingpong diplomacy<\/a> forged ties between the U.S. and China, thawing a relationship had been frozen in hostility, two long-time opponents have again reached across the net for a historic handshake.<\/p>\n

Women’s table tennis teams from South Korea and North Korea announced Thursday that they would not compete against each other, as scheduled, in the quarterfinals of the World Team Table Tennis Championships<\/a>. They told umpires on the court in Halmstad, Sweden, they would skip the match entirely and instead form a unified team to play in the semifinal round.<\/p>\n

“This is a big historical decision for both our countries.” Ryu Seung-min, vice president of the Korea Table Tennis Association, said in a statement released by the International Table Tennis Federation<\/a>, or ITTF.<\/p>\n

“This is an important statement to promote peace between our countries through Table Tennis,” he added.<\/p>\n

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ITTF President Thomas Weikert said in the statement that the federation’s board of directors did not simply approve the unusual agreement: “The unified team received a standing ovation from the delegates who showed their sign of support to this historic move.”<\/p>\n