When North Korea Olympians Lose

North Korea is filled with sore losers, literally. It’s rumored that Olympic athletes who do not take home the gold or medal are forced into labor camps. These labor camps are estimated to hold 200k people, doing hard manual labor. You could say that North Korean athletes have much more motivation than the dreams of landing a Wheaties box as a motivator of Olympic glory. Maybe these scare tactics are working, North Korea currently ranks eighth overall with one bronze and four gold medals.

One might understand U.S. gymnast Jordyn Wieber’s heartbreak when she failed to qualify for the finals or commiserate with the angry tears of South Korean fencer Shin A-lam after a faulty clock dashed her dreams. But things could be a lot worse. What happens to North Korean athletes when they fail to bring home the gold?

ABC reported on Thursday that the state offers a carrot-and-stick approach to the Olympic Games; athletes can look forward to refrigerators, cars, and televisions when they win, and labor camp when they lose…. Continue reading this article at The Huffington Post.

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