Olympic Games: South Korea’s ice hockey coach in difficult situation

By Peter Rutherford

SEOUL (Reuters) – The head coach of South Korea’s women’s ice hockey team said her team was put in the difficult position of having to host North Korean players just weeks before the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.
Sarah Murray said in a speech at the Jincheon National Training Center on Monday that while she had no choice but to coach a Korean team, she felt no pressure to play real games against the North Koreans.
In a move to ease tensions in cross-border relations, the two Koreas agreed last week to field a joint women’s ice hockey team and march under a single flag at next month’s Winter Olympics, following a new round of talks.
The International Olympic Committee said on Saturday that 12 North Korean players would join the South’s 23-man squad. The matchday squad will still feature 22 players and Murray must include at least three North Koreans.
The North will also send athletes to the Games from February 9 to 25 in the disciplines of figure skating, short track speed skating, cross-country skiing and alpine skiing.
“It’s a difficult situation that our team is being abused for political reasons, but it’s about something bigger than ourselves right now,” Murray said at a press conference.
“We didn’t really have much say. We’re just happy we don’t have to play with six (North Korean) players and this was the best scenario for the options we were given.”
Talks between North and South Korea about the Olympic Games have brought some relief to the stalemate over Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programs.
It is the first time that the two Koreas will compete as a united team at the Olympic Games. However, this decision has been met with displeasure by some South Korean athletes. Tens of thousands of people have already signed an online petition against this decision.
Murray said the only criteria for her decision on who plays is what is best for the team.
“I’ve been assured that I have full control,” she said, laughing. “They always say I decide who plays, who plays. As far as I know, I have full control and will field the players I want.”
“So we’re not just going to form a line just to form a line of North Korean players to get ice time.
“We will field players who will be successful and we will play to win with the squad we have.”
North and South Korea are technically still at war, as their 1950-1953 conflict ended with a ceasefire rather than a peace treaty.

(Edited by Ed Osmond)