South Korea drew 2-2 with Olympic hosts Greece in the opening match of the Group A tournament in the Athens Olympics.

In the game held at the Kaftanzoglio Stadium in the northern Greek port city of Thessaloniki, Wednesday evening local time, South Korea took the lead with a goal by Kim Dong-jin in the 42nd minute. The South Koreans, making their fifth consecutive Olympic appearance, extended the lead to 2-0 with an own-goal by Loukas Vyntras in the 19th minute into the second half.

A victory for the South Koreans looked almost certain, but the Greek hosts rallied back from a two-goal deficit to salvage a 2-2 draw and keep the home country from a disastrous opening day.

The Greeks, the Euro 2004 champions, began their comeback when substitute Ioannis Taralidis battled back with a goal in the 77th minute, just moments after he stepped onto the field. A strike from Dimitrios Papadopoulos on a penalty kick with just eight minutes remaining then allowed Greece to escape with a point, much to the delight of the home crowd.

All four countries in Group A remain tied following the first round of action after Mexico and Mali also finished in a tie. Neither team was able to score a goal in that match.

The South Koreans played with 10 men for two-thirds of the game after defender Kim Chi-gon was sent off on the half-hour mark on accumulation of the yellow card.

South Korea takes on Mexico early Sunday morning Korean time in its second match in the Group A tournament.