Japanese authorities cited airport security rules as Korea’s delegation arrived for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
Korean athletes for the 2026 Asian Games arrive at Chubu Centrair International Airport in Nagoya, Japan, on Sept. 17. NEWS1

Korea’s two Asian Games flag bearers arrived in Japan empty-handed after Japanese authorities stopped them from carrying the Taegeukgi (the Korean national flag) through its airport on Thursday.

The main Korean delegation of 122 athletes and staff for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games arrived at Chubu Centrair International Airport in Tokoname, near Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture.

Table tennis player and Olympic medalist Shin Yu-bin and badminton player Seo Seung-jae, who had carried the Taegeukgi on a flagpole when the delegation departed from Incheon International Airport, emerged from the arrivals area without the flag.

Japanese police and Japanese airport authorities reportedly stopped the delegation from carrying the flag. The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee protested, but Japanese authorities refused to allow the flag by citing airport security concerns and internal regulations.

Korean delegations have traditionally carried the Taegeukgi into airport arrival halls at major international multisport events. The 2021 Tokyo Olympics was an exception due to strict Covid-19 safety protocols.

Korean athletes for the 2026 Asian Games wave the Korean flag as they depart from Incheon International Airport, on Sept. 17. YONHAP

The latest incident is adding fuel to mounting public anger at home, with controversy already raging over a separate incident at the athletes’ village two days earlier.

A group of performers dressed as samurai warriors, including one portraying 16th-century warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-98), appeared at a ceremony marking the docking of the Costa Serena, the Italian cruise ship serving as the athletes’ village at Kinjo Pier in Nagoya on Tuesday.

Toyotomi launched Japan’s invasion of Korea in 1592, which began the seven-year Imjin War, one of the most destructive conflicts in Korean history.

Performers dressed as samurai warriors, including one portraying Toyotomi Hideyoshi, appear at a welcoming ceremony at the cruise ship serving as the athletes’ village in Kinjo Pier, Nagoya, Japan, on Sept. 15. SCREEN CAPTURE

“The event was intended to introduce local culture and tourism, and there was no intention to support any particular historical figure or convey any historical message,” the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games organizing committee said.

The explanation contrasts with the response Korea received at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

A banner displayed by the Korean delegation outside the athletes’ village featured motivational messages inspired by remarks by the renowned Korean naval commander, Admiral Yi Sun-shin (1545-98). The admiral engineered several brilliant victories at sea during the Imjin War, helping lead Korea to eventual victory.

Japanese media and right-wing groups fiercely protested the banner as a political message, and the banner was eventually removed.

The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee has since sent official letters to the Olympic Council of Asia and the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games organizing committee over the Toyotomi performance. The committee expressed regret over the incident and called for measures to prevent a recurrence.