North Korean leader Kim Jong Un accompanied his daughter to a soccer match honouring his late father’s birthday, the latest in a series of public appearances that have fueled rumours that she is being groomed for a future leadership role. The presence of Kim and his “loving” daughter, identified as Kim Ju Ae is thought to be approximately 10 years old, provided “joy and excitement” to Friday’s ceremonial game between Cabinet and Defence Ministry staff members.
The Defence Ministry team won the soccer match 3-1 and then beat them again in a tug-of-war event. The ceremony was held to commemorate the late Kim Jong Il, the country’s previous dictator and the father of the present ruler.
North Korea’s official Rodong Sinmun newspaper released photos of Kim and his daughter laughing and cheering from the VIP seats, where they were seated in the center amongst senior government and military figures. Kim Yo Jong, Kim’s sister, and a prominent foreign policy official was spotted seated in the row behind them.
Kim Ju Ae made her sixth public appearance, although it was the first that wasn’t directly tied to her father’s nuclear weapons goals. She first appeared in official media in November, when Kim Jong Un accompanied her to see an intercontinental ballistic missile flight test.
Kim Ju Ae also accompanied her father on a visit to troops, where she sat in the seat of honour at a banquet while flanked by her parents and generals. She also features beside her father in a series of new postal stamps printed on Friday to commemorate the November ICBM test, which North Korea has deemed a success.