North Korea pulls out of Tokyo Olympics, citing coronavirus fears

With the Games just months away, the regime's sports ministry says it wants to protect athletes from the global health crisis'

North Korea's sports ministry said on Tuesday that it will not participate in the Tokyo Olympics this year to protect its athletes amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision was made at a meeting of North Korea's Olympic committee, including its sports minister Kim Il guk, on 25 March the ministry said on its website, called Joson Sports. The committee decided not to join the 32nd Olympics Games to protect athletes from the global health crisis caused by the coronavirus," it said.