The DPRK is appealing a ban of the North Korean gymnast team for participating in world championship’s due to inconsistencies in the reported age of Hong Su Jong. The controversy lies with her reported aged for the Athens 2004 Olympics having her birth year registered as 1985, while other sources cite her birth year as 1989, which would have made her ineligible for the Olympics (she would have been 15 when Olympic rules state athletes must be 16 or older). Though many outlets report her being the older sister of 2008 Olympic gold medalist Hong Su Jong, it is believed that they are in fact twins, both sharing a birthdate of March 9th, 2009 (both pictured above, on the left and the right respectively). It is a requirement for all gymnasts at international meets to carry a license proving their age. The International Gymnastics Federation’s appeal tribunal will rule within the next 5 days.
Source: Yahoo! News via AP
