Seoul, Korea, October 19, 2022: Asia dominated the Eighth ANOC Awards at the COEX Convention and Exhibition Centre in Seoul on Wednesday evening.
Short track speed skater Hwang Dae Heon of Korea was named Best Male Athlete of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and freestyle skiing superstar Eileen Gu of China won the Best Female Athlete of Beijing 2022.
Hwang, 23, won 1500m gold at Beijing and set an Olympic record in the 1000m.
Gu, 19, set the Winter Olympics on fire with two gold medals in big air and halfpipe and added a silver in slopestyle in her first Winter Olympics appearance. She had sprung to prominence at the Winter Youth Olympic Games two years earlier in Lausanne, Switzerland with two gold and one silver medal to put the world on warning for Beijing 2022.
After receiving his award in the COEX amphitheater, Hwang said watching the highlights of Beijing 2022 on the big screen earlier in the evening had brought back a lot of memories.
“I was disappointed with the 1000m race but was happy I could overcome those difficulties and then do so well in the 1500m race as well,” he said on the big stage of the gala awards.
When asked how he retained the thrill of stepping on the ice every day, he replied: “I think that excitement is my passion and, as long as I have that passion for my sport and what I am doing, I will continue to strive and to break through the barriers and set new limits for myself and overcome them as well.”
Gu, who was 18 when she won her three Olympic medals in February, was asked about the 1620 trick she performed to record gold in her first event – big air.
“The Olympics to me have always epitomized everything of what sports should be and celebrate excellence while also emphasizing sportsmanship and respect,” she replied.
“Sometimes when you are at the Olympics you find yourself having to do something you have never done before, not even in practice, at a moment of intense pressure – so intense you have never experienced anything like it before; all in the hopes that, maybe, with that one trick, 1620, you will be able to inspire girls just like you all over the world to take up the sport you love, to break their own boundaries, to create unity and define what’s possible.
“So, I would like to dedicate this award to all the incredible boundary-breaking pioneers that came before me but also especially to all the girls that come after me. You guys inspire me so much. Thank you for the award. I would also like to thank ANOC and the IOC for this incredible honour.”
Eileen, who is now a college freshman at Stanford University studying quantum physics and international relations, plans to challenge herself again at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
China was awarded Best NOC for winning 14 medals, including nine gold, and the award was collected by ANOC Vice President Yu Zaiqing.
Best women’s team: Canada ice hockey
Best men’s team: Sweden curling
Best mixed team: USA snowboard cross
Outstanding contribution to the Olympic movement: Sir Craig Reedie.
