Srisaket named best athlete at award ceremony
NEWLY CROWNED World Boxing Council super flyweight champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai was named the best professional athlete of the year during the 2016 Athlete Award ceremony organised by the Sports Writers Association of Thailand at Anoma Grand Hotel yesterday.
The 30-year-old Srisaket, who took the whole country by storm two weeks ago when he stunned the unbeaten Roman Gonzalez of Nicaragua at the Madison Square Garden, was the clear favourite for the top category award, which earned him the honorable trophy of HM the late King Bhumibol.
Two Olympic medallists Sukanya Srisurat and Tawin Hanprab also won the King’s prestigious trophies in the best female amateur and best male amateur categories respectively.
Chonburi-born Sukanya, 21, won one of Thailand’s two gold medals at the Rio Games last year in the 58kg category in weightlifting. She set an Olympic record in the snatch with a lift of 110kg and an overall total of 240kg to win the gold.
Nineteen-year-old Tawin, who hails from Bangkok, won a silver in the men’s taekwondo 58kg in the 2016 Olympics, which made him the first Thai male to win an Olympic medal in the sport.
The Thai Amateur Weightlifting Association (Tawa) won the best sports association while the best national coach award went to Aree Wiratthaworn from Tawa.
Pongsakorn Paeyo, an athlete who competes in wheelchair racing, won the best male handicapped athlete while the female category was won by Subin Tipmanee.
