Choi Shin-won, president of the Korean Fencing Federation, will receive the Grand Prize at the 18th Sokang Sports Awards.
The Sokang Min Kwan-sik Foundation announced on Tuesday that it had held four rounds of screening committee meetings since January, reviewing sports figures recommended from various sectors, and finalized the winners for each category of the 18th Sokang Sports Awards. Choi was unanimously selected for the Grand Prize, the foundation said.
Since taking office as president of the Korean Fencing Federation in 2018 and serving three consecutive terms, Choi has contributed to ushering in a golden age for Korean fencing, including 12 consecutive victories at the Asian Fencing Championships, four consecutive titles at the World Championships and Asian Games, and gold medals at two straight Olympic Games — the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The Distinguished Service Award went to the late Hong Jong-moon, former president of the Korea Tennis Association, who devoted himself to nurturing junior tennis players. The Special Service Award will be presented to Kim In-geon, former director of the Taereung National Training Center, who has served as a Sokang Sports Awards judge for the past 17 years.
The Best Athlete awards were given to Kim Yun-ji, who won five medals at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Paralympics; Kim Gil-li, a two-time gold medalist at the 2026 Winter Olympics; and Seo Seung-jae and Kim Won-ho, the world's top-ranked men's badminton doubles pair.
The Coach Awards went to Park Gil-woo, head coach of the Korea Disabled Curling Federation, and Ha Kyung-soo, track and field head coach at Yangju City Hall and national team sprint coach.
The 18th Sokang Sports Awards ceremony will be held at 11:30 a.m. Friday in the Crystal Emerald Room on the second floor of Koreana Hotel on Sejong-daero in Jung-gu, Seoul.
