North Korea's Kim lauds U-20 women's soccer World Cup victory

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets with the country's Under-20 women's football team, which won the Under-20 soccer World Cup in Colombia last week, at the ruling Workers' Party headquarters in Pyongyang, North Korea, September 30, 2024, in this photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency. KCNA

SEOUL - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has met the country's women's football team that won the Under-20 World Cup in Colombia last week, lauding their achievement as a source of national celebration and people's unity, state media KCNA said on Tuesday.

North Korea's title win, with a 1-0 victory against Japan, means the country joined Germany and the United States as the only three-time champions of the tournament, following wins in 2006 and 2016.

As the players showed up with a trophy and gold medals at the ruling Workers' Party headquarters on Monday in Pyongyang, Kim greeted and lauded them for beating powerhouses including the United States, Brazil and Austria, KCNA said.

"Each and every valuable achievement that our athletes bring to international games has a unique appeal and inspiration, which further unites our people and powerfully pushes them forward on the path of energetic struggle," he was quoted as saying.

Kim singled out Choe Il Son, a 17-year-old forward who scored a winner in the final and secured the Golden Boot as the overall top scorer with six goals, and the head coach, Ri Song Ho, for their contributions, according to KCNA.

The team received a thunderous homecoming as they returned on Saturday, holding a parade on a large, open truck with families and thousands of ordinary citizens lined up on the streets waving national flags and flowers, state television showed.

-(Reuters)