'AG Gold Medal → Star Award Winner' Kang Jun-ee: "I Want to Become an Icon of Skateboarding" [2026 Futures Star Awards]

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"Thank you so much for this meaningful award."

Kang Jun-ee (18, Korea Roller Skating Federation), a national team skateboarder and gold medalist at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games (AG), smiled brightly. This was during an interview with reporters after receiving the Star Award at the 2026 Futures Star Awards ceremony held on the 26th at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul. On that day, Kang stood on the podium alongside nine other recipients. He said, "I hope to keep working hard and receive another award in the future."

Kang Jun-ee stood on the podium with nine other recipients that day. His selection as a recipient was largely due to his gold medal achievement in the skateboard event at the Asian Games held in Japan last month. At the time, he surpassed all Japanese competitors to stand at the very top of the podium. It was a moment that wrote a new chapter in Korean skateboarding history—the first gold medal since skateboarding was adopted as an official Asian Games event in 2018.

Having visited the awards ceremony site just one month after winning the Asian Games gold medal, he smiled and said, "(After the Asian Games gold medal) there are occasionally people who recognize me." Kang Jun-ee added, "So it feels amazing, and I am grateful that people are starting to know me a little bit. Every time someone recognizes me, I feel thrilled. It makes me happy and gives me strength. I plan to work even harder so that more people can come to know me."

In fact, even before the Asian Games, Kang Jun-ee was an athlete who had topped numerous competitions this year alone, including Battle of the Champions Macao, Street League Skateboarding Downtown LA Takeover, X Games Sacramento Best Trick, and X Games Chiba Street Best Trick. He currently ranks 7th in the World Skate (WS) world rankings. Amidst this, reaching the top at the Asian Games held significant meaning for Kang Jun-ee himself as an "athlete."

Kang Jun-ee's Asian Games gold medal brought great emotion to the public as well. At the time, he attempted a high-difficulty trick called the "Nollie 270 Heelflip Lipslide," but fell in both his first and second attempts, scoring zero points consecutively. He even shed tears of disappointment after the two failures. It was a situation where he could have finished his first Asian Games with a score of zero.

However, Kang Jun-ee chose to attempt the same high-difficulty trick on his final third run, despite having fallen twice previously. Although he had the option to attempt a lower-difficulty trick, he did not give up. Ultimately, Kang succeeded in landing the trick. With a final total score of 180.85 points, he immediately rose to the top of the leaderboard and secured the gold medal.

Kang Jun-ee said, "I gained a lot of confidence after this Asian Games ended," adding, "I think I will be able to feel less nervous in big competitions and achieve better results." Nevertheless, he added, "While preparing for other competitions, I am practicing as usual. (Despite the Asian Games gold medal) I am trying to live as if it were before a competition. I am trying not to become too arrogant because I did well at the Asian Games." This signifies his intention to continue his efforts toward higher goals in future stages, such as the LA Olympics, rather than resting on his laurels from the Asian Games gold medal.

Another aspect of Kang Jun-ee that became a topic during the recent Asian Games was his reaction of shouting "Mom" and celebrating immediately after landing the high-difficulty trick. At the time, Kang mentioned that after two failures, when his mental state had collapsed, he saw his mother sitting in the stands and resolved to repay her for believing in him, which moved the public deeply. His mother was also present at this awards ceremony.

Kang Jun-ee said, "I am so grateful that my mother has always been watching over me from behind. I usually get quite annoyed easily, but I should try to be less irritable from now on (laughing). I love you," smiling before stating emphatically, "As an athlete, I want to work harder and become an icon of skateboarding."

■ Recipients and Prizes (Total 10 people)

◇ Baseball

Ha Hyun-seung (18, Kiwoom Heroes 1st round pick), 3rd year at Busan High School: Prize money of 3 million won

Lee Ho-min (18, KIA Tigers 1st round pick), 3rd year at Gyeongnam High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Soccer

An Ju-wan (17, Seoul E-Land FC), 2nd year at Sinpyeong High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

Jung Hyun-woong (18, FC Seoul), 3rd year at Osan High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Basketball

Yoon Ji-won (18), 3rd year at Gyeongbok High School: Prize money of 3 million won

Yoon Ji-hoon (18), 3rd year at Gyeongbok High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Volleyball

Son Seo-yeon (16), 1st year at Sunmyeong Girls' High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Golf

Yang Yun-seo (18), 3rd year at Incheon Girls' High School Affiliated Broadcasting & Open High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Skateboarding

Kang Jun-ee (18), 3rd year at Yeongdeungpo High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Gymnastics

Hwang Seo-hyeon (18), 3rd year at Incheon Sports High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original