Wearing a blue logo of a map symbolising peace between North and South Korea, the most talked-about team at the Winter Olympics was in action on Sunday in a friendly that drew thousands of spectators.

The two countries’ female ice hockey players, who only began practising together as a team about a week ago, showed plenty of fight in their first competitive match but never really threatened world no. 5 Sweden who beat them 3-1 in Incheon, South Korea. Korea will play Sweden again on 12 February during the tournament proper.

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The outcome didn’t seem to matter to the capacity crowd of 3,000 at the Seonhak International ice rink. Fans waved miniature flags showing a unified Korean peninsula, chanted “we are one” and screamed whenever their team went on the attack. The arena erupted when the South Korean forward Park Jong-ah cut the deficit to 2-1.

The Korean players stood for traditional tune of Arirang at the start of the game, instead of their respective national anthems, and received warm applause as they left the arena after the contest.

“I think the North Korean players played really well. This is one of the biggest crowds they played in front of,” said Sarah Murray, the joint team’s Canadian head coach. “Being added 12 days ago and not getting to practice together all that much, they played our system pretty well, so I am proud of them.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Unified Korean team walk out onto the ice at the start of the match. Photograph: Kim Hong-Ji/AFP/Getty Images

The team’s North Korean coach, Pak Chol Ho, said the two Koreas “can do anything if they do things as one.”

The Korea team is part of a rapprochement between the two countries for the Pyeongchang Games, which Seoul sees as an opportunity to revive meaningful communication with Pyongyang following an extended period of animosity and diplomatic stalemate over North Korea’s nuclear programmes.

The Olympics begin Friday, with Pyeongchang, which will host the skiing, snowboarding and sliding events, and Gangneung, a coastal city about an hour’s drive away, which will host the ice hockey, skating and curling events. North Korea plans to send hundreds of people to the games, including athletes, officials, artists and a 230-member cheering group.

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The Korean players appear to be getting along. They arrived at the arena on Sunday relaxed, stretching and exercising in the hallway before gathering in a scrum and shouting “Team Korea!”



Supporters began gathering outside the stadium hours before the game under a heavy police presence.. “I don’t even care about the results, I just want to cheer for them and see them work together and help each other out on the ice,” said Kim Hye-ryeon, 42, who brought her two young children to the game.





Across the street from the arena, dozens of anti-Pyongyang activists waved South Korean and US flags to denounce what they said had become the “Pyongyang Olympics”.

