SEOUL, Nov. 4 (Yonhap) -- Choi Dong-won, widely considered one of the finest pitchers in South Korean baseball history, was honored as the latest national "Sports Hero" on Wednesday.
The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) named Choi, who passed away in 2011 at age 53, as the next inductee into its Sports Hall of Fame.
The KSOC has been selecting one Sports Hero each year since 2011 to celebrate athletic feats of the country's sports stars. Choi is the first former baseball player to be so honored. Among the former athletes Choi joins are the 1936 Olympic marathon gold medalist Sohn Kee-chung, ex-International Olympic Committee Vice President Kim Un-yong, the 2010 Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yu-na and football legend Cha Bum-kun.
The KSOC said its selection committee picked Choi over two other candidates: the 1992 Olympic men's marathon champion Hwang Young-cho and the 1992 Olympic men's doubles badminton gold medalist Park Joo-bong. The induction ceremony for Choi will be held sometime in December, the KSOC added.
This July 4, 2009, file photo shows the late former pitcher Choi Dong-won throwing out a ceremonial first pitch for his former Korea Baseball Organization club, Lotte Giants, at Sajik Baseball Stadium in the southeastern city of Busan. (Yonhap)
This July 4, 2009, file photo shows the late former pitcher Choi Dong-won throwing out a ceremonial first pitch for his former Korea Baseball Organization club, Lotte Giants, at Sajik Baseball Stadium in the southeastern city of Busan. (Yonhap)
Choi pitched for eight seasons in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) and is best known for the six seasons he spent with the Lotte Giants, based in his hometown of Busan.
Choi won the 1984 regular-season MVP award by going 27-13 with six saves and 14 complete games in 51 appearances. He struck out 223 batters that year, a single-season record that stood for 37 years.
Later that year in the Korean Series, Choi famously won all four games for the Giants. He appeared in five games in the best-of-seven battle and threw three complete games. Choi remains the only pitcher in KBO history to be credited with four wins in a best-of-seven postseason series.
Dubbed Iron Arm for his endurance, Choi pitched more than 200 innings in each of his first five seasons, but his body broke down in his later years, and he retired after the 1990 season at age 32.
In 248 career games, Choi finished with a 103-74 record and 26 saves, along with a 2.46 ERA and 1,019 strikeouts in 1,414 2/3 innings. He owns the second-lowest career ERA among all KBO pitchers with at least 1,000 innings pitched.
In his post-playing career, Choi worked as coach, television commentator and game supervisor for the KBO.
The Choi Dong-won Award was created in 2014 to honor the best pitcher in South Korean baseball each year.