Victor An

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Reason for choosing this sport	He was inspired by the performance of Korean short track skater Chae Ji-Hoon at the 1994 Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer. He tried the sport as an extra curriculum activity at school, and asked his parents if he could begin practising because he found it interesting.
When and where did you begin this sport?	He took up the sport in 1993 while he was in the first grade of primary school in Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Memorable sporting achievement	Winning a gold medal in the 1500m at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Turin [his first Olympic gold medal] and claiming four medals [three gold, one bronze] at the 2014 Games in Sochi. (Athlete, 08 Nov 2017)
Most influential person in career	His family. (Athlete, 08 Nov 2017)
Milestones	His victory in the 1000m at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi made him the first male short track skater to win four Olympic gold medals. He also finished top of the 2013/14 World Cup rankings for the 500m, becoming the first short track skater representing the Russian Federation to win a World Cup title. (SportsDeskOnline, 16 Feb 2014; sovsport.ru, 17 Nov 2013)
Awards and honours	He was named the 2014 Athlete of the Year by the Russian edition of 'GQ' magazine. (dni.ru, 17 Sep 2014) He received the Order for Merits to the Fatherland [fourth grade] in the Russian Federation in recognition of his performance at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi. (kremlin.ru, 24 Feb 2014) He has received the title of Honoured Master of Sport in the Russian Federation. (minsport.gov.ru, 31 May 2019)
Sporting philosophy / motto	"No pain, no gain." (Athlete, 08 Nov 2017)
Other information	RETIREMENT He retired from competitive short track in September 2018 but reversed his decision in February 2019, announcing that he hoped to compete at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. However, in April 2020 he revealed that knee problems were affecting his ability to train and that he would no longer be competing in the sport. "It takes a lot of time to recover, treat [my knee] and rehabilitate after competitions, so it is very difficult to train properly. In addition to constant pain in the knee, other injuries have also appeared. It is becoming increasingly difficult to stay fit, so I decided it was time to leave elite sport. I came to the conclusion that it was impossible to pursue a sporting career through motivation alone. I think that now is the right time, so I decided to retire." (russkating.ru, 27 Apr 2020) FROM REPUBLIC OF KOREA TO RUSSIAN FEDERATION He represented the Republic of Korea at the Olympic Winter Games in 2002 and 2006, but decided to switch nationality after failing to qualify for the 2010 Games in Vancouver. He received Russian citizenship in 2011. "Russia offered me the best conditions from all possible options. I came as I needed a good atmosphere to train in calmly, and I found it here." (washingtonpost.com, 17 Feb 2014; aif.ru, 24 Dec 2013; sovsport.ru, 14 Nov 2013; sport-express.ru, 09 Sep 2013) NAME He chose Victor as his Russian name in honour of Korean-Soviet rock star Viktor Tsoi, and also because it is similar to the word 'victory'. (washingtonpost.com, 17 Feb 2014)
Injuries	He missed the 2015/16 season due to knee problems. (olympics.nbcsports.com, 18 Mar 2016; yonhapnews.co.kr, 18 Mar 2016) In 2008 he crashed into a wall during training and suffered a knee injury that nearly ended his career. He underwent four operations over the course of 15 months but, despite having recovered in time to compete, he was not selected for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. (Athlete, 08 Nov 2017; washingtonpost.com, 17 Feb 2014; koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com, 30 Dec 2011)
Hero / Idol	Swiss tennis player Roger Federer. (Athlete, 08 Nov 2017)