Paris Olympics draws backlash from S. Korean netizens over alleged discrimination

Photos of the Chinese, left, and South Korean teams, along with their flags, posted on the official Instagram account of the Paris Olympics. Captured from Instagram

By KTimes

• Published Jul 29, 2024 2:19 PM KST
• Updated Jul 30, 2024 9:27 AM KST

The image of the 2024 Paris Olympics has taken a significant hit among South Korean netizens following a series of alleged discriminatory actions by the organizers, which have been widely discussed across various online communities on July 27 (KST).

The controversy began on July 26 when the official Instagram account of the Paris Olympics posted photos of various national teams arriving by boat on the Seine River during the opening ceremony.

The post celebrated the arrival of athletes from 206 participating countries, waving their national flags to the crowds along the riverbank.

However, the photo of the South Korean team stood out for its poor quality compared to those of other nations. While athletes from the United States, Japan, China, and Canada, among others, were clearly visible with their flags in high resolution, the South Korean team’s photo was blurry, with indistinguishable faces and barely recognizable flags.

This discrepancy sparked outrage, especially since even teams with only a few athletes, like Cyprus and Bhutan, had clear and sharp photos.

Multiple online communities in South Korea shared side-by-side comparisons of the South Korean team’s photo with those of other countries.

This incident compounded existing frustrations, as the organizers had previously misidentified the South Korean team as North Korean during the ceremony.

Netizens expressed their anger, with comments such as, “Why do they keep doing this to us?” and “Calling us North Korea was definitely intentional.”

Typo controversy adds fuel to fire

Further aggravating the situation was a typo in a congratulatory message on the Paris Olympics’ official Instagram account on July 27.

The post, meant to celebrate South Korean fencer Oh Sang-uk’s gold medal win in the men’s saber individual event, misspelled his name as "Oh Sangku." Although the error was corrected shortly after, it did little to quell the dissatisfaction.

Some netizens even dubbed France as “the China of Europe,” thereby inferring its perceived arrogance and dismissiveness to that of China’s controversial historical revisionism and cultural dominance. They argued that France, like China, seems to undermine other nations while boasting about its own cultural heritage.

Criticism over public urinals

Additionally, a viral YouTube video showing “unpartitioned” male urinals on Paris streets during the Olympic period drew criticism, with comments such as “This is unacceptable.”

The video was posted by Paris-born TV personality Fabien on July 25 on his YouTube channel.

Titled "Paris Olympics Start! Are They Ready?" the video showcased various preparations in Paris, including several unpartitioned public urinals on the streets.

Fabien expressed his shock at finding such facilities in public, saying, “I had only seen these in news reports, but they’re actually here. France is notorious for public urination due to a lack of restrooms.”

Netizens reacted strongly to this, with comments such as “These temporary toilets will become a nightmare in the summer heat” and “Paris seems unfit to host the Olympics.”

International media, including the BBC, have previously highlighted Paris’s ongoing issues with public urination and foul odors due to a shortage of public restrooms. Despite efforts to install more temporary urinals ahead of the Olympics, the problem persists.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by generative AI and edited by staff of The Korea Times.