Tokyo, July 26 (Reuters)-As a nutritionist for 35 years as a South Korean Olympian, Han Jung-sook said that the Tokyo Olympics is a challenging task.

She is responsible for coordinating a team of 16 people, providing food for the Korean team at the Tokyo Olympics, ensuring that the ingredients are free of radiation, and safely transporting 400 lunch boxes every day under the sweltering heat.

The South Korean team rented the entire hotel, about 20 minutes' drive from the athletes’ village, to cook for the contestants and screen the ingredients to prevent radiation.

The country’s own food plan for the Tokyo Olympics has become a stimulus between the already tense relationship between Seoul and Tokyo, sparking criticism from Japanese social media and some politicians. Organizers stated that the food provided by the Olympic Games is safe. read more

South Korea used the 2011 Fukushima tsunami and safety issues after the nuclear disaster as an excuse to anger Japan by regularly adopting measures such as restricting the import of Japanese seafood.

"There are radiation problems. As people responsible for the safety and health of athletes, our mission is to carefully examine these problems," said Han, who has been running such events since the 2012 London Olympics.

Her work starts at 4 in the morning and ends at 8 in the evening. She never walks out of the hotel to comply with the coronavirus protocol.

In her kitchen, purchasing and screening manuals—including the use of radiation equipment—hang at the entrance. Kimchi and sauces come from the country, but fresh products such as meat and vegetables come from the local Japanese market.

The manual states that seafood, vegetables and fruits in eight prefectures, including Fukushima, are banned.

On July 8, 2021, in Seoul, South Korea, South Korean athletes took a group photo at the opening ceremony before the South Korean 2020 Tokyo Olympic delegation went to Japan. Jung Yeon-je/Pool via REUTERS

The kitchen staff put rice, kimchi, dried seaweed and eight other dishes into plastic boxes, and the delivery staff deliver them three times a day in the athlete’s village.

South Korean athletes said that they like to make their own packed lunches for takeaway, because they would rather eat in their own room than go to the cafeteria in the village, worrying about the risk of contracting COVID-19.

"I have to participate in the competition and should be careful about the coronavirus. So lunch boxes are better," South Korean badminton player Heo Kwang-hee told Reuters while picking up lunch boxes in the village.

"I think they are doing radiation checks here, so I eat this because I feel safer." He said.

A Japanese athlete said that although the tension between Japan and South Korea showed no signs of easing, the athletes of the two countries did not feel the heat, at least in terms of food.

"When they (South Koreans) bring lunch boxes, they share them with us, just like seaweed rice rolls," said Ren Hayakawa, a Korean Japanese archer.

"Unfortunately, there is a problem that has nothing to do with sports."

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2020 Tokyo Olympics-Swimming-Women's 100m Butterfly-Final-Tokyo Aquatic Center-Tokyo, Japan-July 26, 2021. Canada's Margaret McNeill celebrated after winning the gold medal. REUTERS/Marko Djurica-SP1EH7Q04TYI5

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