Speedskater Kim Min-sun (25, Government of Korea) and alpine skier Choi Sa-ra (21, Korea National Gymnastics University) were named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for January and February, respectively, at the 2024 MBN Women's Sports Awards.
The new "Ice Queen" Kim Min-sun clocked 1:13.42 in the second race of the women's 1,000-meter race at the fifth edition of the International Ice Skating Union (ISU) Speedskating World Cup 2023-2024 at the Utah Olympic Oval in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, in January. The time was a full 10 seconds faster than the previous South Korean record of 1:13.66, set by Lee in September 2013 at the Pole Classic in Canada, and faster than her personal best of 1:13.79 set in December 2022. Kim finished the season ranked second in the women's 500 meters on the World Cup Series with three gold, two silver and one bronze medals from the third through sixth World Cup Series events.
"I think breaking the Korean record means the most to me," said Kim, "I have a lot of goals, but I feel like I'm one step closer to challenging the world record with Sanghwa, so I have bigger goals and I have more confidence that I can do it again. I will be training to improve my power from last season. I'm looking forward to next season as I've made progress in the start area, which is what I was aiming for."
Choi Sa-ra (visually impaired - guide Normal Hyun), who was the youngest national alpine skier to compete at the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games, beat her twin sister Choi Gil-ra to first place in the women's alpine ski slalom at the Winter Games in February with a time of 1 minute, 14.99 seconds. 안전놀이터 It was her second consecutive Winter Games double, and in January, she won the downhill and super giant slalom at the FIS Para Alpine Skiing World Cup Cortina 2024.
"This is the first time I've won a medal at the World Championships and finished first at the World Cup," Choi said of her win, adding that it gave her confidence. "I'm aiming for a medal at next year's World Championships and the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Milan," she added.
The MBN Women's Sports Awards judging committee said, "Kim Min-sun is a speedskating ace and has been highly praised for her overwhelming performance this season, and Choi Sa-ra has been interested in skiing since she joined the PyeongChang Dream Program in 2014 at the age of 11 and won the national championships in her first two years of skiing," and added, "We look forward to seeing her perform well at the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Milan."
Meanwhile, the MBN Women's Sports Awards was established in 2012 to promote women's sports and encourage female athletes in Korea. Every month, athletes who have shined in Korean women's sports are selected as monthly MVPs and awarded, and at the end of the year, a comprehensive award ceremony is held in December, inviting athletes who have contributed to raising the status of Korean women's sports throughout the year.