Japan's Kosuke Hagino reacts after winning in the men's 200m freestyle final swimming competition at the Munhak Park Tae-hwan Aquatics Center during the 17th Asian Games in Incheon September 21, 2014. [Photo/Agencies] |
INCHEON, South Korea - Japanese swimmer Kosuke Hagino was announced MVP for the 17th Asian Games here on Saturday.
Hagino, 20, won medals in all seven events he competed in, winning golds in the men's 200m freestyle, 200m and 400m individual medleys, and the 800m freestyle relay, in addition to one silver in the 400m freestyle and two bronze medals in the 100m and 200m backstroke events.
Hagino said, "It was especially meaningful for me bacause I had a chance to compete with big-name stars such as Park Tae-Hwan (of South Korea) and Sun Yang (of China). I'm already happy with my performance, but more thrilled to receive my first-ever MVP."
It is the third time a Japanese athlete was presented with the MVP award. In 1998, runner Koji Ito was named the first-ever Samsung MVP award, and in 2002 swimmer Kosuke Kitajima was named the games' MVP.