The South Korean Olympic chief said Friday the country will name its own MVP of the Paris Summer Games, an honor that will also come with prize money.
Lee Kee-heung, head of the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee (KSOC), told Yonhap News Agency that the top-performing South Korean athlete will be recognized after the end of the 17-day competition, set to begin with an opening ceremony Friday evening.
The KSOC introduced the MVP awards at the Hangzhou Asian Games last fall. Archer Lim Si-hyeon and swimmer Kim Woo-min were voted by South Korean media as the female and male MVPs, after each won three gold medals. Lim and Kim each received 30 million won (US$21,645).
Lee, who met with coaches inside the athletes’ village Friday morning, also said coaches will be rewarded for their hard work.
“We will need coaches to step up if our athletes are to perform to the best of their abilities at the Olympics,” Lee said. “Based on their performances here, we will hand out prizes to coaches once we return home.”
Th
e KSOC has gone out of its way to help South Korean athletes. For the first time in a dozen years, the KSOC set up a Korea-only camp in an Olympic host city, complete with training facilities, dining hall serving Korean food and medical and treatment rooms. Athletes have raved about the setup inside Team Korea Paris Platform in Fontainebleau, some 60 kilometers south of Paris.
Lee was hopeful that South Korea could exceed the KSOC’s modest target of five gold medals.
“We’ve settled on that total based on an objective analysis,” Lee said. “But depending on how athletes feel on the day of their competition, and how far their youthful energy can carry them, we could exceed that target.”
Source: Yonhap News Agency
