North Korean Sport Diplomacy in the Olympic Movement Under the Kim Jong-un Regime

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is a rational actor in the domain of Olympic diplomacy. Due to the relative political and economic isolation, sport presents a few remaining windows through which North Korea can maintain relationships with other nations. DPRK’s leader, Kim Jong-un, accentuates the development of elite athletes explicitly as a way to build a thriving socialist nation. In this respect, this article examines his regime’s diplomatic endeavors at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang and the 2024 Olympic Summer Games in Paris. It also considers a film entitled ‘Running in North Korea’, which was released in 2019 via the Olympic Channel. As to the theoretical frameworks, it utilizes the notions of diplomacy-through-sport and diplomacy-in-sport. North Korea actively utilizes sport to improve its international image and promote tourism. Communist Korea is also adept at orchestrating diplomatic conduct inside the IOC and its relations with the South Korean NOC. While the DPRK is not the only country that exploits sport diplomatically, Kim’s regime tends to utilize every available means in sport to maximize the international gains. Surely, North Korea is a deliberate player in sport diplomacy.