 |
| ▲ President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with senior aides at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Feb. 12, 2026. (Pool photo) (Yonhap) |
 |
| ▲ Hwang Dae-heon of South Korea celebrates after winning the silver medal in the men's 1,500-meter short track speed skating event at the Winter Olympics at Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on Feb. 14, 2026. (Yonhap) |
(Olympics) Lee-short track medalist
(OIympics) Lee congratulates short tracker Hwang Dae-heon on silver medal win
SEOUL, Feb. 15 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung on Sunday congratulated short track speed skater Hwang Dae-heon on his silver medal win at the men's 1,500 meters at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
"I send a big applause to Hwang Dae-heon, who has captured a priceless silver medal," Lee wrote on Facebook after Hwang clinched the medal -- for his second consecutive medal in that distance -- on Saturday (local time).
Lee touted Hwang for proving his world-class talent, noting how he won the silver following a gold medal at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
"Hwang managed to keep his pace and stayed calm until the end in a competitive race," the president said, adding he will root for Hwang so that the athlete can continue to reap good results going forward.
Lee also mentioned two other South Korean speed skaters, Shin Dong-min and Rim Jong-un, sending a message of encouragement to them.
Hwang finished in second place behind Jens van 't Wout of the Netherlands in a chaotic, nine-skater final at Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan, four years after winning the gold medal in Beijing. Roberts Kruzbergs of Latvia took the bronze.
This was South Korea's second short track medal here and its fifth medal overall. The country leads the all-time short track medal race with 26 gold medals and 55 medals overall.
(END)
(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved
