North Korea sent its largest-ever delegation to Japan — 180 members — for the Aichi-Nagoya Games; 2 unidentified members have expressed a desire not to return

North Korean players bow to their supporters after a 1-1 draw against South Korea in a women's football group-stage match at Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa in Fukuroi, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, on Monday.
North Korean players bow to their supporters after a 1-1 draw against South Korea in a women's football group-stage match at Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa in Fukuroi, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, on Monday.

Two members of North Korea's delegation to the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games are reportedly seeking asylum in Japan, according to a South Korean media report.

Monthly magazine Wolgan Joseon reported Tuesday, citing a source in Japanese intelligence, that two of the 180 North Korean delegation members attending the games had expressed their intention not to return to North Korea.

The two individuals are said to prefer asylum in Japan rather than South Korea.

Their identities and roles within the delegation have not been confirmed. Whether the matter will ultimately result in a formal asylum request also remains unclear.

Reuters cited the Wolgan Joseon report Tuesday (local time), noting that the information was said to have come through a source connected to the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, known as Chongryon.

The 20th Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games opened Saturday and run through Oct. 4, spanning 16 days across Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya.

North Korea dispatched a delegation of 180 people, including 107 athletes, officials and support staff. The athletes comprise 42 men and 65 women competing across 14 sports, including football, weightlifting and wrestling.

The large-scale visit by a North Korean sports delegation is the first since the 1985 Kobe Summer Universiade — a gap of 41 years — and marks the largest North Korean sports contingent ever to participate in a competition held in Japan.

Japan generally bars North Korean nationals from entering the country under its own unilateral sanctions over Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs, but made an exception for athletes and officials attending the international sporting event.

Japan also used the games as an opportunity to seek contact with the North Korean side. A Japanese government official conveyed Tokyo's desire to promote bilateral exchanges to North Korean Sports Minister Kim Il-guk on Saturday, the opening day, but Kim showed little reaction, according to reports.


jshan@heraldcorp.com