Asian Games: Japanese swimmer Hagino named MVP

Kosuke Hagino

Incheon, Oct 4 (IANS)

Japanese swimmer Kosuke Hagino was named the MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the 17th Asian Games on Saturday.

Hagino, 20, won medals in all seven events he compted 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, reports Xinhua.

"It was especially meaningful for me because 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," said Hagino.

It is the third time a Japanese athlete has been presented with the MVP award. In 1998, runner Koji Ito was named for the first Samsung MVP award, and in 2002 swimmer Kosuke Kitajima was selected.