Athletes from the two Koreas marched together for the opening of the 15th Asian Games in Doha, the eighth such joint march for the two countries in international sporting events since 2000.

Some 270 South and North Korean athletes marched as one country, "Korea," flying the blue-and-white "unification flag" as they entered the 50,000-seat Khalifa Stadium in Qatar's capital city.

South Korea's 832 athletes are competing in 39 events, with the goal of winning 70 or more gold medals and finishing at least second in the standings.

North Korea's 250 athletes are competing in 19 events and aim to finish in the top ten.

Meanwhile, preliminary inter-Korean talks on the fielding of a joint squad for the 2008 Beijing Olympics hit a stumbling block over the selection of athletes. North Korea insists on equal representation, while South Korea maintains that only the best athletes should be chosen.