A North Korean Taekwondo demonstration team visiting South Korea could present a way forward to reduce tensions by using sports to reestablish a channel of dialogue and cooperation.

 

South Korean President Moon Jae-in was on hand for the opening of the World Taekwondo Championship being held in Muju, South Korea where he welcomed the first inter-Korean taekwondo exchange in a decade.

“I believe in power of sports which has been creating peace. I am pleased that the first sports exchange cooperation between two Koreas of this new government has been accomplished through this event,” said President Moon.

The recently elected progressive South Korean leader advocates balancing international economic sanctions imposed on the Kim Jong Un government in the North for its continued nuclear and missile provocations, with non-political outreach, including sports diplomacy, to build trust and facilitate communication.

Taekwondo divide

The World Taekwondo championship being held over the next several days is the largest competition of the sport to be held, with 973 athletes participating from 183 different countries.

Taekwondo is a relatively modern sport based on ancient Korean martial arts that gained prominence in the decades after the division of the Korean Peninsula at the end of World War II. Its development has been complicated by the bitter rivalry between the communist North and capitalist South.

The two Koreas support competing federations that teach different martial arts techniques and developed different competition rules.

The event in Muju is being organized by the South Korean dominated World Taekwondo (recently rebranded from the World Taekwondo Federation — WTF) that emphasizes fast kicks. The federation was recognized by the International Olympic Committee as the official governing body for taekwondo after the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games and became an official medal sport in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

The 32 North Korean athletes attending the competition in South Korea this week are affiliated with the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) that is combat training focused and allows more direct contact including punches to the head and face.  ITF athletes generally have not competed in the World Taekwondo Championship or the Olympics because their fighting styles are incompatible.

“It is quite different sports-wise because in ITF sparring lots of punching are allowed, including punches to the face, whereas in the World Taekwondo sparring punches to the face are not allowed and that is a very different strategy,” said Sanku Lewis one of the few ITF martial arts instructors living in Seoul.

At this time there are no plans for the two federations to merge according to World Taekwondo officials.

The 32 members of the North Korean team performed a taekwondo exhibition at the opening ceremony of the championship on Saturday, but the ITF canceled a press conference with North Korean officials.  

 

Choue Chung-won, director of the World Taekwondo, said the North Koreans will stay for the duration of the games.

“They are going to perform again in the closing ceremony so we are going to have a lot of time and chance to have a chat with them to learn more details about the future exchange programs,” he said.

Sports diplomacy

Pyongyang has so far rejected offers of humanitarian aid and request for a reunion of families separated by the division of Korea.

This inter-Korean sports exchange is a small breakthrough that analysts say could open the door to further cooperation.

“While North Korea is not (completely) ready, I think (the North Korean team) is coming to send a message that it is at least willing to try to improve inter-Korean relations,” said Ahn Chan-il, the head of World Institute for North Korean studies.

Chang Ung, a North Korean member of the IOC and Do Jong-hwan, the new South Korean Sports Minister both came to Muju for the opening of the taekwondo championships. They are expected to discuss North Korea’s possible participation in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. The South Korean sports minister has proposed forming a joint women’s ice hockey team as a show of Korean unity.  

 

President Moon says he hopes North Korea will not only come to the Olympics next year but he also suggested the two Koreas jointly bid to host the 2030 World Cup.

“If the North Korean team participates in PyeongChang Winter Olympics, I think it will greatly contribute to realize the harmony of mankind and improvement of peace in the world which are the value of Olympics,” Moon said at the taekwondo championship.

In the United States, public anger at the repressive Kim Jong Un state has increased following the recent tragic death of Otto Warmbier, an American student who was arrested in North Korea and remained in custody for over a year, despite suffering a serious injury that sent him into a coma.

 

But in South Korea public support for engagement with North Korea is increasing.  

Over 70 percent of South Koreans support reestablishing dialogue channels with North Korea according to a recent survey by the National Unification Advisory Council.

Youmi Kim contributed to this report.
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Alt-country rocker Steve Earle and country star Miranda Lambert shared writing credit on one of Lambert’s biggest hits from her debut album in 2005, but the two never actually got into a writers’ room until more than a decade later.

 

Lambert wrote the song “Kerosene,” the album title track, which led to her first Grammy nomination. But she later decided it sounded too similar to a song penned by Earle, so she gave him credit.

 

“I hate telling her this, but I would have never done anything about it,” said the 62-year-old Grammy-winning songwriter known for songs like “Copperhead Road.” “It’s a gift from Miranda the way I see it.”

 

But that connection and a chance meeting between the two at a beauty salon lead Earle to decide it was finally time to do a proper co-write with one of country music’s biggest stars. Last year the two penned a twangy breakup duet featuring fiddle and guitar that melds the two voices, one weathered and the other weary.

The two later cut the song in Austin, Texas, for Earle’s new album, “So You Wannabe An Outlaw,” released last week.

 

“It was a really cool experience to write with him and he’s such an amazing songwriter,” Lambert said. “I was intimidated but I learned a lot.”

Earle has the same high opinion of Lambert, calling her last effort — the critically acclaimed double album “The Weight of These Wings” — stunning.

 

“The women are the strong singer-songwriters in Nashville as this point,” Earle said during a tour rehearsal in Nashville, Tennessee. “Chris Stapleton is an exception. Most of the guys, their stuff is all right, but they are mostly, largely just party songs. It’s kind of hip-hop for people who are afraid of black people, I guess, as far as I can tell.”

 

But he doesn’t blame country radio for largely ignoring female artists.

 

“I think the labels have an idea of what is selling and right now the common wisdom is guys under 30 is what’s selling in country music,” Earle said.

 

When Earle first arrived in Nashville from Austin in the ’70s, he was the young gun among a group of veteran singer-songwriters like Townes Van Zandt, Rodney Crowell, Guy Clark, Waylon Jennings and more. It was the beginning of the outlaw movement, which Earle attempts to revisit on his new record.

 

Earle, who broke out with his 1986 debut “Guitar Town,” said he still runs into fans who believe the movement was all about booze, drugs and a freewheeling lifestyle, although Earle’s previous addictions have contributed to that lore.

“Part of the point of this record was to rehabilitate the term ‘outlaw,”’ he said.

“There was this moment when country music that was art was going on here and in Austin, and I was there.”

 

In writing the record, Earle swapped out his acoustic guitar for a Fender Telecaster and spent a lot of time listening to Jennings’ “Honky Tonk Heroes.” He growls on the title track with Willie Nelson that being an outlaw meant “you can’t ever go home.”

 

“I was always grateful and was very aware that I had just gotten here in time to be a part of a moment,” said Earle. “A lot of the things that I am able to do at this point in my life, I am able to do because I happened to be lucky and be in the right place at the right time.”
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Women have always been an essential component of Hollywood as lead actresses in the romance genre, in comedy and drama. But women have found it difficult to establish themselves in roles traditionally claimed by men in the film industry, such as filmmakers and leads of superhero films. This summer, that ceiling has finally been broken by talented women. VOA’s Penelope Poulou has more.
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They had a long way to go and a short time to get there, but hundreds of fans in Pontiac Trans Ams have put the hammer down and made it to Atlanta to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Smokey and the Bandit.

About 350 cars this week retraced actor Burt Reynolds’ wild ride from the Texas-Arkansas line to Atlanta in the movie that roared into pop culture in 1977.

“Every town we drive through, people come out to film us, take pictures and wave as our convoy of cars comes through — it’s like being in a huge parade,” said organizer Dave Hall of Lincoln, Nebraska.

Truckers and others also took part in “Snowman’s Run,” a road trip that raises money for wounded veterans in the name of the late actor and musician Jerry Reed, who played the trucker Snowman in the movie.

All of them have gathered in Jonesboro, Georgia, the town 15 miles (25 kilometers) south of Atlanta where much of the movie was filmed.

Reynolds to attend

This weekend, they plan to re-create some of the movie’s memorable scenes, including a stunt driver’s attempt to jump 150 feet (45 meters) through the air in a Trans Am. Also planned: a Burt Reynolds look-alike contest.

Reynolds himself will also be in attendance, and will take part in a question-and-answer session in a city park, Jonesboro City Manager Ricky Clark Jr. said.

“People are coming from all over the U.S. and other countries,” Clark said. “I got a message from someone from Switzerland who is flying over for this event.”

Smokey and the Bandit was among the first big-budget movies to be filmed in Georgia, paving the way for more recent films such as The Hunger Games movies and TV shows such as AMC’s The Walking Dead.

Many of the scenes from Smokey and the Bandit were filmed on Main Street in downtown Jonesboro, nearby U.S. Highway 41 and other roads in the area, Clark said.

Bandit’s jump

Some of the buildings still stand. The city’s train depot that dates to 1867 appears in the movie, but moviemakers temporarily replaced its Jonesboro sign with one that said “Texarkana” so they could film scenes set in the town on the Texas-Arkansas line. That’s where the movie’s main characters picked up the 400 cases of Coors beer they would deliver to Atlanta in 28 hours. Participants in the anniversary celebration plan to re-create the “Coors scene” at the spot where it was filmed in Jonesboro this weekend.

A stunt man driving a Trans Am had also had hoped to re-create the Bandit’s jump across the Flint River west of downtown Jonesboro. The leap allowed Reynolds and his passenger, Sally Field, to evade the pursuing law officers, whose patrol cars plunged into the river seconds later.

But organizers decided another jump at the river site, now overtaken by weeds, wasn’t feasible. So they will instead re-create the jump at Atlanta Motor Speedway Saturday evening.
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In preparation for a 2024 Olympic bid, Paris transformed the area around the river Seine into an Olympic park, hosting events on Friday and Saturday to make one final push for the rights to host the games.

The last time the French capital hosted the event would be 100 years earlier, in 1924.

Paris and Los Angeles are the only two cities competing to host the games. Los Angeles last hosted the event in 1984.

With the Eiffel Tower in view, Paris residents and Mayor Anne Hidalgo took to the water in canoes and kayaks to showcase what the 2024 games in Paris could look like.

“It’s a way of saying, look, how we want to celebrate with the whole world by hosting the games, we hope, and then Tony and I made a bet a while ago to kayak along the Seine so it will be a big first for me,” Hidalgo said.

Hidalgo kayaked in the river Seine near the Pont Alexandre III Bridge, alongside former Olympic gold medal canoeist Tony Estanguet, who is leading Paris’ bid to host the event.  

“This is a great opportunity for us to give a taster of what the games will be like here in 2024,” Estanguet said.

Paris last attempted to draw a bid for the Olympic Games in 2005, when it lost to Beijing for the rights to the 2008 games, sparking tears in the French camp as results were announced.

The winning city will be announced on September 13, in Lima, Peru.
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Women are making strides in Hollywood this summer with the female-directed film “Wonder Woman” soaring past $600 million at the box office worldwide and another woman-led production, “The Beguiled,” picking up the coveted Palm D’Or for Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival. VOA’s Penelope Poulou has more.
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On a recent summer night, the sun was still shining as people prepared to run a 5K race for charity. But they hadn’t had a drop to drink or eat since before dawn. Ariadne Budianto reports.
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A new exhibit in New York City enables visitors to experience Michelangelo’s masterpieces from as close as the Florentine master was when working on them in the early 16th century. Nearly 34 reproductions of his best pieces from the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican are at the Oculus art center and transit hub at the Westfield World Trade Center. VOA’s Zlatica Hoke reports the exhibit will move from New York to other U.S. cities.
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Peter Jok’s long journey that began in war-torn Sudan and detoured through Ugandan and Kenyan refugee camps has not landed him on an NBA basketball court — yet.

Jok, a University of Iowa standout for four years, had been predicted to be chosen in the first two rounds of the National Basketball Association draft in New York.

While he wasn’t chosen by an NBA team in the draft, Jok did agree to compete in Las Vegas with the summer league team of the New Orleans Pelicans.

The 198-centimeter-tall  (6 feet 6 inches) Jok told VOA’s South Sudan in Focus that his future once looked bleak, but since he began to play competitive basketball, he has set his sights on achieving a bright future.

“I have had a lot of ups and downs, but it has made me into a better man and a better player,” he said. “Everything I have been through has given me more edge, more motivation to go harder. The process is hard work, but you keep the faith and believe in God.”

From Lakes state

Jok, who is originally from South Sudan’s Lakes state, scored an average of 19.9 points per game in his senior year at Iowa. He was one of 62 players invited to the NBA Combine, a talent showcase for college players that’s held before the draft.

Jok made the All-America team and, on his 23rd birthday on March 30 this year, won the 3-point-shooting contest held as part of U.S. college basketball’s Final Four weekend festivities.

“In today’s game, every team needs a shooter,” Jok said. “I can shoot with the best of them. I feel my game fits the NBA better than college, because there’s more availability to do more things. My strength is shooting. And that’s what a lot of NBA teams need right now.”

Jok credits his mother, Amelia Ring Bol, for his leadership skills and work ethic.

“Growing up, I was always with my mom,” he said. “I would go everywhere with her. No matter what she went through, I was always with her. No matter what I am doing, I am doing it for her. I just knew from when I was growing up I was going to be a mama’s boy.”

His father was killed in the long war that resulted in South Sudan’s independence from Sudan in 2011. He and his mother fled Sudan when he was a young boy, eventually moving to the U.S. state of Iowa. He never played basketball until fourth grade, though his height and skills soon made him into a top prospect and one of the best players in the state.

Support of family, friends

Jok realized he easily could have ended up on the wrong path, but he believes the odds were more in his favor, thanks to family and friends.

“Moving to Iowa, I have always been surrounded by the right people. My background, coming from where I come from … if you have the right people around you and you have hard work in your system, I feel you can go anywhere,” said Jok.

If Jok had been picked by an NBA team, he would have been the third South Sudanese player active in the league, along with Luol Deng and Thon Maker.
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Ron Howard is taking command of the Han Solo “Star Wars” spinoff after the surprise departure of directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

 

Lucasfilm announced their replacement director Thursday, two days after Lord and Miller left the project over creative differences. Howard gives the reeling production a veteran hand in the wake of Lord and Miller’s exit in the midst of shooting.

 

Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm, said filming will resume July 10. The untitled film, which stars Alden Ehrenreich as a young Han Solo, is about three-quarters of the way through production. It has several weeks of shooting left, along with reshoots.

 

Howard has shepherded Oscar winners like “A Beautiful Mind” and “Apollo 13.” But his recent films, including the “Da Vinci Code” sequel “Inferno” and “In the Heart of the Sea,” have struggled at the box office. He also has some history with Lucasfilm. He helmed the 1988 fantasy “Willow” and starred in George Lucas’ 1973 breakthrough “American Graffiti.”

 

“We have a wonderful script, an incredible cast and crew, and the absolute commitment to make a great movie,” said Kennedy.

 

Disney reiterated the film’s release date of May 25 next year, suggesting that — at least for now — the “Star Wars” spinoff will be released on schedule. Representatives for the studio declined to comment.

 

How producers and the Directors Guild of America handle the film’s directing credit will also be closely watched. DGA rules govern the crediting of directors.

 

Lord and Miller had previously been considered among Hollywood’s most sought-after directors, having turned “The Lego Movie” and “21 Jump Street” into unexpected and widely praised comedy hits. But reports have circulated that the duo, who favor improvisation and irreverent humor, clashed with Kennedy and co-writer Lawrence Kasdan, a “Star Wars” veteran and executive producer.

 

“Unfortunately, our vision and process weren’t aligned with our partners on this project. We normally aren’t fans of the phrase ‘creative differences’ but for once this cliche is true,” the directors said earlier in a joint statement. “We are really proud of the amazing and world-class work of our cast and crew.”
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Bill Cosby plans to conduct a series of free public seminars about sexual assault this summer, his spokesman said days after a Pennsylvania judge declared a mistrial in the entertainer’s sex assault trial.

The 79-year-old comedian was best known for his role as the father in the hit 1980s TV comedy “The Cosby Show” before dozens of women came forward over the past few years to accuse him of sex assault, with one of the allegations leading to this month’s criminal trial outside Philadelphia.

“I received hundreds of calls from civic organizations and churches requesting for Mr. Cosby to speak to young men and women about the judicial system,” Andrew Wyatt, Cosby’s spokesman, said in an email on Thursday.

Pennsylvania prosecutors plan to re-try Cosby on charges of drugging and sexually assaulting Andrea Constand at his home near Philadelphia in 2004, after the jury in the first trial failed to reach a verdict.

The case is the only criminal prosecution to emerge from dozens of similar allegations against Cosby, as the other cases are too old to be the subject of criminal prosecution.

Wyatt cited Cosby’s assertion that former district attorneys had vowed not to prosecute him during negotiations related to a civil lawsuit.

“These groups would like for Mr. Cosby to share that people in the judicial system can use their powers to annul deals for personal agenda and political ambitions,” Wyatt said.

In a Wednesday interview on Birmingham, Alabama’s WBRC-TV news, Wyatt offered more detail about the seminars.

“This issue can affect any young person, especially young athletes of today,” Wyatt said. “And they need to know what they are facing when they are hanging out and partying when they are doing things they shouldn’t be doing. And it also affects married men.”

Cosby has long denied sexually assaulting anyone, saying that any sexual contact he had with Constand or anyone else was consensual.
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There’s good news for pesto lovers.

The airport in Genoa, Italy, home of the famous sauce, is allowing passengers to take pesto with them on flights, providing they make a small donation of less than a dollar to the Flying Angels charity, which helps provide money for sick children to be flown overseas for treatment. Travelers giving donations will get a special sticker to put on their jar of pesto.

Since June 1, when the program started, some 500 jars of the basil, cheese, pine nut and olive oil sauce have already been allowed to pass through security, airport officials said.

 

“We consider it an amazing result”, airport press officer Nur El Gawohary told The Independent.

There are a few rules. Passengers can only take a 500-gram jar or two 250-gram jars, they must be flying directly from Genoa, and the pesto must be from Genoa.

Jars are scanned by a special x-ray machine before being allowed on board.

Airport officials say the idea came to them after having seized hundred of jars of pesto from travelers trying to take a little taste of Genoa back with them.

“Every year we were confiscating hundreds of pesto jars at security control, and throwing them away,” El Gawohary says. “It was a waste of food and an annoyance for our passengers. So we started to think about how we could allow people traveling with hand baggage only to take pesto with them.”
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A Cartier wristwatch given to Jackie Kennedy and a painting she made in 1963 as a thank-you gift to reciprocate sold for $379,500 on Wednesday, more than three times pre-sale estimates, Christie’s auction house said.

Christie’s said the price was reached after three minutes of “spirited bidding” in its New York saleroom, online and by phone. It did not identify the buyer.

The auction house had estimated the watch and the painting, sold as one lot, would fetch up to $120,000, calling them “two of the most important historic artifacts to surface in recent years from the golden era of the Kennedy Presidency.”

The Cartier tank watch, engraved on the back, was given to the then-U.S. first lady by her brother-in-law Prince Stanislaw “Stas” Radziwill, and she was photographed many times wearing it.

The picture was painted by Kennedy to mark a 50-mile (80-km) hike in Palm Beach in 1963 that Radziwill and other friends of the Kennedys undertook to promote fitness.

Most of Jacqueline Kennedy’s personal belongings were auctioned in 1996 following her death from cancer in 1994 at age 64. The 1996 auction at Sotheby’s in New York raised some $34 million, more than seven times pre-sale expectations.

The seller of the watch wished to remain anonymous but has pledged to donate a portion of the auction proceeds to the National Endowment for the Arts.
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