Photo courtesy of Dan Orlowitz
North Korea had a little help from their southern neighbors to win the 2013 EAFF Women’s East Asian Cup. South Korea’s stunning upset of World Cup holders Japan handed their geo-political rivals the title over the tournament favorites last Saturday.
North Korea clinched the title in the four-team round-robin format after managing 7 points leaving Japan in second place with only 4 points. South Korea leapfrogged bottom-placed China with the surprise win over the World champions (each with 3 points). On the last day of the competition, the North Koreans were equal on points with Japan before the start of their match against China. Ri Un-hyang’s header in the second minute sealed the win. Then came South Korea’s surprise 2-1 defeat of Japan via Ji So-Yun’s brace which sealed the title for the northern neighbors.
Ironically, North Korea and South Korea were also celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice on the same day. The two teams posed together for a group photo (pictured above) after the ceremonies to commemorate a day of added significance for both sides.
This is North Korea’s first triumph following consecutive runners-up finishes in 2005 and 2008. Japan meanwhile had won the previous two editions.
THOUGHTS:
Ji So-Yun = a legitimate Nadeshiko killer? 😉
nice to see injured vets Sawa and Kinga on hand to watch the final match
sad to see Aya cry 🙁 with no Sawa-senpai to comfort her
this is such an absolute shame! there should be no politics in sports!! my country has been on the receiving end of such unfortunate events recently. when our men’s side played Hong Kong the home fans were vicious, and then Taiwan banned our basketball team from a tournament we won last year… sigh.
That’s what happened during men’s game. Not racist slander, but the Korean banner condemns Japan for not being sorry enough for the past. This kind of thing no doubt emboldens dirty medias to benefit by fanning negative emotions.
i just read about the JFA filing a complaint for a political (racist?) banner during the South Korea-Japan match. not sure if for the men or women though.