 Former South Korean short-track national team member Ahn Hyun-soo trains ahead of the 2007 Winter Asian Games in China in this photo taken Jan. 26, 2007. Ahn is looking to obtain Russian citizenship to compete as a Russian athlete at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. / Korea Times file |
By Yoon Chul
Former Korean Olympic gold medalist Ahn Hyun-soo is likely to skate not for Korea but for Russia in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
The Russian Skating Union (RSU) said that Ahn, 25, who won three gold medals at the 2006 Winter Games in Turin is seeking Russian citizenship.
The RSU announced Tuesday that it asked the Russian government to grant Ahn citizenship in order to make him eligible to compete for Russia in the next Olympics on their home soil.
“We talked a lot with Ahn about his decision to skate for Russia and discussed to the slightest detail,” said RSU President Alexei Kravtsov.
Kravtsov added that Ahn hoped to stay in Russia as a coach after retirement and the RSU president said Ahn would receive a Russian passport by October.
Ahn Ki-won, the Olympic gold medalist’s father, told Yonhap that nothing has been finalized.
“It has not been decided that he will get his citizenship, but the Russian union did ask him first,” the senior Ahn said. “And I think Hyun-soo may have responded positively.”
Ahn is one of the best short track skaters ever, not only in Korea but also in the world.
The former short track ace won five consecutive world championships from 2003 through 2007. At the Turin Olympics, he snatched three gold medals in the men’s 1,000 and 1,500 meters as well as in the 5,000-meter relay. He also took bronze in the 500 meters.
But in 2008, Ahn injured his knee and underwent four operations in 15 months and failed to make the national team for 2010 Winter Games.
To make matters worse for Ahn, his team Seongnam City Hall closed its doors last year because of financial troubles.
The skater, who had been hoping to regain his fame on the rink, looked for a way to continue his training and finally headed to Russia in June last year.
“In Korea, Hyun-soo had no support and was actually ostracized. He’s been deeply hurt over such a difficult time,” his father said.
Before Ahn headed to Russia, he revealed that his goal was to return to the Korean squad for the 2014 Winter Olympics. He has already mentioned his intention to compete at the Korean national team trials next year.
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