Chinese envoy voices hope for stronger taekwondo exchanges with N. Korea

China's top envoy to North Korea has visited a key taekwondo facility in Pyongyang to highlight the importance of sports exchanges involving the traditional Korean martial art between the two countries, according to the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang on Monday. According to the embassy, Chinese Ambassador to North Korea Wang Yajun visited Taekwondo Hall in Pyongyang on Saturday, where he was briefed by the North Korean taekwondo governing body on the state of the development of taekwondo and watched a demonstration performance. Wang was accompanied by several officials of the North Korean foreign ministry. The Chinese Embassy said North Korea has some 5,000 expert taekwondo athletes across the country, with each province having dedicated universities in the martial art form. During the visit, Wang recognized the long and rich history of taekwondo and how it shares spiritual commonalities with the traditional culture of Chinese martial arts, expressing hope that the sport would "contribute to the endless development of relations" between China and North Korea by emotionally connecting the pWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times