Victor An Returns to Korea... "Contract with China National Team Expired"

On the 5th, at the Beijing Capital Indoor Stadium, Kim Seon-tae, the coach of the Chinese team that won first place in the mixed-gender short track relay final at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, and Viktor An (Korean name Ahn Hyun-soo), the technical coach, are sharing joy with the athletes. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Viktor An (37, An Hyun-su), who naturalized as a Russian citizen and is currently a technical coach for the Chinese short track speed skating team, will return to Korea after his contract with China expires.

Chinese news portal Sina Sports reported on the 17th that Viktor An is scheduled to leave the Chinese national team at the end of this month. After his contract expires, Viktor An plans to return to Korea, where his wife Unari and daughter reside, to take a rest.

Viktor An joined the Chinese national team in 2020 at the invitation of former Chinese head coach Wang Meng (currently a CCTV commentator). He reportedly formed ties with the Chinese side while training in China in 2019. His annual salary is said to be 3 million yuan (approximately 560 million KRW).

Viktor An achieved a triple crown at the 2006 Torino Olympics representing Korea, but due to factional disputes within the skating community and the aftermath of a knee injury, he was excluded from the 2010 national team selection, which prevented him from participating in the Vancouver Olympics. Consequently, he renounced his Korean citizenship in 2011 and acquired Russian citizenship.

He made a comeback by winning another triple crown at the 2014 Sochi Olympics representing Russia and retired from skating in 2020.

Meanwhile, on the 7th, after Hwang Dae-heon and Lee Jun-seo were disqualified in the men's 1000m short track semifinals due to a lane change violation, Viktor An was seen interacting with Korean national team athletes.

He posted a message expressing his regret over the controversial disqualification of Korean athletes, stating, "Knowing how desperate and important the Olympic stage is for athletes, as a senior, colleague, and coach watching the situation unfold on-site, I feel heartbroken about the current judgment issues," but later deleted the post.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.