North, South Korean Gymnasts Unite for Selfie

Moment hailed as triumph of Olympic spirit
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 9, 2016 12:33 AM CDT
North, South Korean Gymnasts Unite for Selfie
South Korea's Lee Eun-ju, left, smiles as she talks with North Korea's Hong Un Jong during the artistic gymnastics women's qualification.   (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)

"This is why we do the Olympics," tweeted political scientist Ian Bremmer after an iconic moment in Rio. Gymnasts Lee Eun-ju of South Korea and Hong Un-Jong of North Korea posed for a selfie during training, where they were seen chatting happily despite the tension between their nations, the BBC reports. The moment was hailed as a triumph of Olympic spirit, though a few skeptics wondered whether Hong would be punished. CNN reports that this is the first Olympics for the 17-year-old Lee, while Hong, 27, first competed at the 2008 Games in Beijing, where her gold medal in vault was her country's first-ever Olympic gymnastics medal. (This hijab-wearing American athlete made history in Rio on Monday.)

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