Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee will deliver the Medal to Ambassador of Egypt to Korea Hazem M. Fahmy today.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) of the Republic of Korea will posthumously award the Order of Sport Merit’s Cheongnyong Medal to the late President of the African Taekwondo Union (AFTU) Ahmed Mohamed Fouly, who passed away last year at the age of 72.

When he served as World Taekwondo Vice President and AFTU President, he helped the African Taekwondo Union grow into the largest of World Taekwondo’s five continental federations. He also contributed to four African nations winning five medals in taekwondo at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics. In 2018, he visited Pyeongyang in North Korea with a World Taekwondo delegation as part of an effort to harmoniously unite taekwondo in South and North Korea. The AFTU federation comprises 52 of World Taekwondo’s 210 member countries.

The Order of Sport Merit is presented to those who have raised the prestige of national sports by contributing to athletic advancement while rendering distinguished service to national development. The Cheongnyong – Blue Dragon – Medal holds the highest rank. Past recipients include Guus Hiddink, former head coach of the Korean National Football Team (2002) and IOC President Thomas Bach (2018).

At 10:30 am on Friday, April 30, the Egyptian Ambassador to Korea will receive the medal from Minister Hwang on behalf of President Fouley’s bereaved family, who could not travel to Korea. The Minister said, “We will work to ensure that taekwondo, the Republic of Korea’s national sport, will establish itself as an Olympic event that fosters the IOC’s spirit of equality and harmony within diversity. We will continue to maintain friendly relations with countries in Africa to advance and spread taekwondo there going forward.”