Asian Para Games hit by three national anthem errors
Iran’s anthem was played at two para taekwondo medal ceremonies, while South Korea’s anthem was mistakenly used before a women’s volleyball match.
Three national anthem mix-ups occurred at the Asian Para Games in Aichi Prefecture, Nagoya Mayor Ichiro Hirosawa said. Hirosawa, who is acting head of the Games’ organizing committee, apologized for the repeated errors.
Two mistakes affected para taekwondo gold medal ceremonies. A Mongolian athlete won the women’s event and a Taiwanese athlete won the men’s event, but both ceremonies used Iran’s anthem. The organizing committee attributed the errors to an incorrect setting in the music playback software.
During the women’s ceremony, organizers interrupted the Iranian anthem and switched to Mongolia’s. The men’s ceremony was held again.
The third error came before China faced Iran in women’s sitting volleyball. South Korea’s anthem began playing in place of China’s; organizers stopped it midway and played the Chinese anthem.
The Asian Games also experienced an anthem error before a men’s hockey match between South Korea and Bangladesh on Sept. 18, when North Korea’s anthem was played instead of South Korea’s.
