Seong Seung-min honored three times at modern pentathlete awards

Korean modern pentathlete Seong Seung-min was named both the junior and senior Female Pentathlete of the Year on Sunday at the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne awards in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Korea's Seong Seung-min celebrates winning gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics in Paris on Aug. 11, 2024. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Korean modern pentathlete Seong Seung-min was named both the junior and senior Female Pentathlete of the Year on Sunday at the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne awards in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The UIPM awards cap off a big year for Seong, who rose to world champion in June with gold at the 2024 World Modern Pentathlon Championships in Zhengzhou, China and became the first Asian woman ever to medal in Olympic modern pentathlon with bronze at the 2024 Paris Games.

Seong, 21, took both the 2024 Junior Female Pentathlete of the Year and 2024 Senior Female Pentathlete of the Year awards, eligible for both categories as junior competition extends to 21 under UIPM rules.

Seong also received the 2024 Fair Play Award, an honor given to the athlete, male or female, that best embodies the spirit of sportsmanship in competition. Seong was praised for her actions at the world championships in June, when she reached to help Hungarian athlete Blanka Guzi as she stumbled near the finish line.

Seong shared the 2024 Senior Female Pentathlete of the Year award with Michelle Gulyas of Hungary, who won gold at the 2024 Paris Games. The equivalent men’s award went to Ahmed Elgendy of Egypt, also a gold medalist at the 2024 Paris Games.

The Fair Play Award was shared with Rex de la Cruz of the Philippines.

Seong Seung-min poses with her three awards at the 2024 Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne awards in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Sunday. [KOREAN MODERN PENTATHLON FEDERATION]

Seong ends 2024 as world No. 1 in both the senior and junior competitions with the World Championship gold, Olympic bronze and three UIPM awards to her name.

“I take it as a sign to work harder in the future” Seong said on Sunday, according to the JoongAng Ilbo. “I will do my best at the upcoming 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.”

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]