Swimming star Hwang Sun-woo under police investigation for hit-and-run charges

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

National

Wed, November 29, 2023 | 10:34

Law & Crime

Swimming star Hwang Sun-woo under police investigation for hit-and-run charges

Posted : 2023-08-14 11:41

Updated : 2023-08-14 15:50

Korean swimmer Hwang Sun-woo speaks at a press conference at Olympic Parktel in Seoul, following his return from the World Aquatics Championships held in Fukuoka, Japan, Aug. 2. Yonhap

Korean swimming star Hwang Sun-woo is under police investigation over a suspected hit-and-run accident, local authorities said Monday.

Police in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, said Monday that Hwang is being accused of leaving the scene after striking an 80-something man with his vehicle's side-view mirror Sunday evening.

Police added Hwang had been driving back to the National Training Center in the central county, where he'd been training for the upcoming Asian Games.

According to police, the impact of the collision shattered the side mirror of Hwang's car, but the elderly man avoided serious injuries.

Hwang returned to the scene about 30 minutes later and told police officers there that he might have caused the accident.

An officer with the Jincheon police force said they are trying to find out further details about the case.

An official with the Korea Swimming Federation (KSF) said Hwang had already settled the case with the elderly man and covered his medical expenses.

"Hwang told us he tried to avoid hitting a jaywalker and didn't realize at first he'd caused any accident," the official said. "He said he returned to the scene after discovering that his side-view mirror had been damaged."

Hwang, 20, won the bronze medal in the men's 200-meter freestyle at the world swimming championships last month in Japan. He'd won the silver medal in the same event at last year's world championships, and is the first Korean to win a medal at consecutive worlds.

Hwang is also considered one of Korea's top medal hopefuls in the pool at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.

Athletes convicted of a crime can be prevented from representing the country internationally, depending on the severity of their punishment. The KSF official said he didn't expect Hwang to be ruled out of the Asian Games, which will open on Sept. 23. (Yonhap)