Korean Olympic Committee Protests to Organizing Committee Over Toyotomi Performance at Athletes' Village

▲ Cruise athletes' village welcome event performance

The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee has filed an official protest with the Olympic Council of Asia and the organizing committee regarding a welcome event performance featuring Toyotomi Hideyoshi at the athletes' village for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

An official from the committee stated today (September 17), "We became aware of the situation that occurred during the cruise athletes' village commemorative event, and sent a letter under the name of President Yoo Seung-min yesterday to the OCA and the organizing committee, expressing immediate regret and demanding measures to prevent a recurrence."

The controversy arose during the pre-event performance of a ceremony held on September 15 at Nagoya's Kinjo Pier to mark the docking of the large cruise ship Costa Serena, where armed performers dressed as three figures from the Sengoku period born in Aichi Prefecture—Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, known as the three heroes of Nagoya—took the stage.

The Costa Serena serves as the athletes' village where delegations from various countries will stay during the Games.

While the "three heroes of Nagoya" are local symbols actively utilized for tourism and cultural content, criticisms followed over whether it was appropriate for Toyotomi, who invaded Joseon and initiated the Imjin War, to appear at an event welcoming athletes to a competition that advocates for Asian harmony.

Lee Sang-hyun, head of the South Korean delegation who arrived with the main contingent of athletes at Chubu Centrair International Airport near Nagoya on the same day, said, "While local Japanese culture is important, it is also regrettable that there was a lack of consideration for our delegation. However, rather than being conscious of such things, our job is to focus on our natural game and show our best performance."

It was reported that neither the OCA nor the organizing committee has yet given an official response to the committee's letter.

However, the organizing committee stated in response to media inquiries yesterday (September 16), "The performance in question was not intended to support a specific historical figure or convey any historical message."

While explaining that the event was meant to introduce the local culture and tourism of the host region, Aichi and Nagoya, the organizing committee partly acknowledged that there was potential for controversy, stating, "We will continue to pay close attention to ensure that all programs and contents are appropriate for an international sports event in the future."

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