North Korea has begun watching the Tokyo Olympics three weeks late

North Korea aired its first Tokyo Olympics broadcast a whole two days after the closing ceremony.

The delayed Tokyo 2020 Games came to an end last Sunday with a spectacular closing ceremony at the Olympic Stadium.

But the government in Pyongyang have only just begun broadcasting events from the tournament, The Sun reports.

According to Yonhap, the socialist regime’s first broadcast of the Games was the women’s match between Britain and Chile.

That match, which Team GB comfortably won 2-0, originally took place three weeks ago.

Korean Central Television (KCTV) aired 70 minutes of Team GB’s opening fixture of the tournament.

Specialist North Korean website NK News claims the game was aired without any commentary and with a low resolution.

Residents in North Korea would’ve had no knowledge of the Games as they aren’t permitted access to the internet or watch international TV channels.

North Korea opted against sending a delegation to Tokyo this year due to concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, insisting they wanted to protect their athletes.

The regime, however, has publicly claimed there are no cases of Covid in the country.

A statement from the country’s ministry of sport read: “The committee decided not to join the 32nd Olympic Games to protect athletes from the global health crisis caused by the coronavirus.”

The International Olympic Committee reached out to North Korea several times to assess the state of the pandemic within its borders.

An IOC spokesperson said: “The IOC has not received any official application from the NOC of DPRK to be released from their obligation to take part in the Olympic Games according to the Olympic Charter.”

The Tokyo 2020 games marked the first time North Korea has missed a summer games since 1988.

The North Korean government opted to boycott the Seoul Games due to the ongoing Cold War, which ended three years later. news.com.au