International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach decided on Wednesday to suspend North Korea from the International Olympic Committee until the end of 2022.
And Reuters news agency reported, on Wednesday evening, that the suspension of North Korea’s membership in the Olympic Committee means its absence from the Winter Olympics in Beijing, after its absence from participating in the Tokyo Olympics 2020.
“The membership of the National Olympic Committee of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has been suspended until the end of 2022 as a result of its unilateral decision not to participate in the Tokyo Olympics,” Thomas Bach said at a press conference.
Bach added that the decision means that the North Korean Olympic Committee will not receive financial support during the suspension period, and will permanently lose the support that was previously withheld due to the sanctions.
IOC President Thomas Bach said the IOC reserved its right to make decisions about any North Korean athletes who qualifies for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and to reconsider the length of the ban.