NAGOYA - Three national anthem mix-ups occurred on the same day at the ongoing Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games, with Iran's anthem mistakenly played during medal ceremonies for Chinese Taipei and Mongolia, while South Korea's anthem was played instead of China's before a women's sitting volleyball match.
According to Nagoya city officials, the first incident occurred on October 20 during the men's para taekwondo medal ceremony, when Iran's national anthem was played instead of the Chinese Taipei Paralympic Committee Anthem.
The mistake was discovered after the Chinese Taipei delegation raised the issue with organizers. Officials subsequently decided to hold the medal ceremony again on the evening of October 22 to correct the error.
A similar mistake occurred during the women's para taekwondo medal ceremony, when Iran's national anthem was played instead of Mongolia's. Members of the Mongolian delegation pointed out the error, prompting organizers to stop the music and play the correct Mongolian anthem.
A third incident took place before a women's sitting volleyball match, when South Korea's national anthem was played for approximately five seconds instead of China's.
The three incidents occurred on the same day, raising concerns about the management of national anthems and ceremonial procedures at the international sporting event.
Nagoya Mayor Ichiro Hirosawa expressed frustration that the mistakes had occurred despite operational procedures being reviewed following similar problems during the Asian Games.
"These mistakes also happened at the Asian Games, so I thought the procedures had been reviewed based on what we learned. But it has happened again. This is not good," Hirosawa said.
The incidents have renewed questions about the effectiveness of the organizers' efforts to prevent ceremonial errors, particularly after previous mistakes prompted a review of operating procedures.
Source: TBS
