Chang Ung, a North Korean member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), says that it is effectively impossible that the rules and regulations of the North Korea-led International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) be officially recognized at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

During an interview with Voice of America (VOA) on Sunday, Chang said that it is possible for North Korean athletes to learn the rules of South Korea’s World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) and compete under the WTF rules at the next Olympics.

The ITF chairman, however, added that Pyongyang wants its athletes to compete at the Olympics under the ITF rules, but the chance is remote as the schedule until the Olympics is too tight.

The Seoul-based WTF was the only global taekwondo body sanctioned by the IOC, thus only the athletes of countries recognized by the WTF were allowed to compete in the Olympics. The two taekwondo bodies also run competitions under different rules.

But under a groundbreaking agreement in August between the WTF and ITF, athletes registered to either of the two organizations are now able to compete in one another's competition, including the Olympics.