North Korean International Olympic Committee member Chang Ung said Friday that both Koreas need to be allowed to compete in Taekwondo during the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.
 
Speaking in an interview with the Voice of America, Chang, who also heads the North Korea-led International Taekwondo Federation (ITF), said the federation is discussing the matter with both the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the South Korea-led World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).
 
Currently, the WTF is the only taekwondo governing body sanctioned by the IOC, meaning that non-ITF members can compete at an Olympics under the usual IOC rules.
 
Chang said the North is willing to make concessions in order to compete in Tokyo, including having its athletes sport WTF headgear, although it won’t have them wear WTF uniforms.
 
But, he also called on the IOC to do its part, such as dividing the taekwondo discipline at Tokyo into two subcategories so that the ITF athletes won’t have to adapt to WTF rules.
 
Regarding inter-Korean cooperation on taekwondo, Chang said there is a possibility of exchanges, noting that the ITF responded positively to the WTF’s invitation to the WTF World Championship in Muju, North Jeolla Province next year.
 
Chang said the WTF also can visit Pyongyang. Early this month, the ITF expressed hope that the WTF will send a demonstration team to the next ITF World Championship in Pyongyang next year.
 
The WTF and the ITF signed an agreement in August last year in Nanjing, China to increase cooperation for the benefit of the sport.