Unified Korean team defeated by Japan at table tennis championships

A unified Korean women's table tennis team lost 3-0 to Japan on Friday in the semifinals at the 2018 World Team Table Tennis Championships in Halmstad, Sweden.

Korean staff and players from the DPRK and ROK applaud during the women's semifinal as Korea came up against Japan at the World Team Table Tennis Championships 2018 in Halmstad, Sweden, on Friday, May 4, 2018. [Photo: VCG]

The DPRK and ROK were due to go head-to-head in a quarterfinal scheduled for Thursday. But the two teams decided to join forces, advancing automatically to the semifinals.

The move comes shortly after the DPRK's leader Kim Jong-Un met with ROK President Moon Jae-in in the demilitarized zone in Panmunjom on April 27.