North Korea could co-host 2021 Asian Winter Games with South Korea

North Korea could co-host the 2021 Asian Winter Games along with South Korea, Chang Ung, the North Korean member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Tuesday according to the Yonhap news agency.

The 79-year-old IOC member mentioned that if that happens, North Korea’s Masikryong Ski Resort could be used as one of the competition venues.

Chang made the remarks after South Korea’s Gangwon Province governor Choi Moon-soon said on February 17 that he is pondering a proposal to co-host the Games with North Korea.

“Talks between South and North Korea are making significant progress ... Meanwhile, a shared understanding of holding talks between the United States and North Korea is growing,” Moon told reporters in Pyeongchang.

“(I) hope the inter-Korean talks could lead to talks between the U.S. and North Korea and also denuclearisation talks.”

Sufficiently possible

Chang told Yonhap News Agency that co-hosting the 2021 Asian Winter Olympics is “sufficiently possible. ... Since a smaller number of countries participates in the Asian Games, it would be easier than the Olympics.”

The IOC Member also praised the Pyeongchang Games as being “perfect”, adding: “The Olympics are a great success, thanks to unity achieved by the Korean people.'

Held every four years, the Asian Winter Games is a competition contended between members of the Olympic Council of Asia.

The host of the 2021 event will be decided at the 2018 Asian Summer Games hosted by Indonesian cities of Jakarta and Palembang in August.

The proposal, if put forward, would need consent from the South Korean unification ministry.