(LEAD) Short tracker Hwang Dae-heon named top male athlete of Beijing 2022 by ANOC

▲ South Korean Olympic short track champion Hwang Dae-heon speaks after winning the trophy for Best Male Athlete of Beijing 2022 at this year's Association of National Olympic Committees Awards ceremony in Seoul at the Convention and Exhibition Center in southern Seoul on Oct. 19, 2022, in this photo provided by the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

▲ In this file photo from Feb. 10, 2022, Hwang Dae-heon of South Korea celebrates his gold medal from the men's 1,500m short track speed skating race during the medal ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics at Beijing Medal Plaza in Beijing. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) S Korean athlete-award

(LEAD) Short tracker Hwang Dae-heon named top male athlete of Beijing 2022 by ANOC

(ATTN: CHANGES first photo)

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, Oct. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korean Olympic short track champion Hwang Dae-heon was named the top male athlete at this year's Winter Olympics by the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) on Wednesday.

Hwang was the winner of the Best Male Athlete of Beijing 2022 category at the annual ANOC Awards ceremony in Seoul. The South Korean capital is the host of the 26th General Assembly of the ANOC, and the awards ceremony was held after the first day of meetings at the Convention and Exhibition Center (COEX) in southern Seoul.

The ANOC Awards were held for the first time in 2014, and they recognize achievements from the most recent Olympic Games in even years and from continental multisport events or world championships in odd years.

In Beijing, Hwang won the gold medal in the men's 1,500 meters and added the silver medal in the men's 5,000m relay.

Hwang is the first South Korean recipient of any prize at the ANOC Awards since 2018, when figure skating legend Kim Yu-na won the Outstanding Performance category. The unified Korean women's hockey team received the Inspiring Hope through Sport Award that same year.

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