'Korea’s Only Multiple Gold Medalist' Kim Gilli Becomes First Winter Olympics MVP of Korean Delegation

From Olympic Debut to 2 Golds and 1 Bronze
Chosen Over Halfpipe Champion Choi Gaon

Kim Gilri of Seongnam City Hall, nicknamed "Lambor-Gilri," who has emerged as the new face of Korean short track after becoming a double Olympic champion, has been selected as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the Korean delegation at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics.

On the 20th (local time) at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy, Kim Gilri, who won the women's 1500m short track final at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, is performing a victory ceremony. Yonhap News

On the 22nd, the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee selected Kim Gilri as the MVP of the Winter Olympics at the Korean delegation’s closing ceremony, held at Korea House set up at Villa Necchi Campiglio in Milan, Italy. In a vote conducted among reporters who covered these Olympics on site, Kim received the highest number of votes and was chosen as MVP.

Kim was the only Korean athlete at these Games to win two gold medals. Making her Olympic debut, she claimed her first-ever Olympic medal by winning bronze in the women’s 1000m short track event held on the 16th. She then went on to lead the team to gold in the women’s 3000m relay. In the women’s relay final on the 19th, skating as the second skater and anchor, Kim, with two laps remaining, cut inside from second place, overtook Arianna Fontana of Italy, who had been in the lead, and moved into first. She then sprinted away and was the first to cross the finish line.

Kim added another gold in the women’s 1500m. In the women’s 1500m final held on the 21st, she beat her senior teammate and self-professed idol Choi Minjeong of Seongnam City Hall to capture the gold. After Kim became a double champion and Choi took silver, Choi announced that "this will be my last Olympics," naturally creating a symbolic scene of the short track queen’s succession ceremony.

Kim said, "I believed in myself because I knew how hard I had worked."

In particular, Kim was chosen as MVP ahead of Choi Gaon of Sehwa Girls’ High School, who won gold in the women’s snowboard halfpipe and opened a new chapter for Korean skiing and snowboarding. The MVP award for the Korean delegation also went to Kim Gilri.

Kim said, "Thank you for giving me such a meaningful award. There were many difficult moments, but I was able to endure thanks to those who cheered for me," adding, "I will continue to strive to become an athlete who can grow even more."

Meanwhile, starting from the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, which were held in 2023, the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee has been selecting and awarding an MVP at every major international multi-sport event. As a result, Kim Gilri has earned the honor of becoming the very first MVP of a Winter Olympics. Previously, at the Hangzhou Asian Games, archer Lim Si-hyeon received MVP honors, and at the 2024 Paris Olympics, archers Lim Si-hyeon and Kim Woojin were named MVPs.

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