SEOUL: North Korean athletes have travelled to China for the Asian Games, state media said, signalling an end to the country’s more than three-year isolation from global multisport competitions.

The country closed its already-tight borders in early 2020 following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and skipped the Tokyo Olympics, which were pushed back to 2021 because of the coronavirus.

It was then banned from the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, for failing to take part in Tokyo.

But Pyongyang said late Saturday it had sent athletes to the Asian Games, to be held in the city of Hangzhou later this month.

“A DPRK team left here on Sept. 14 to take part in the 19th Asian Games to be held in China,” the Korean Central News Agency reported, using the country’s official name.