CICI awards new cultural ambassadors

The three winners of CICI Korea 2017 are the legendary golfer Pak Se-ri, the computer algorithm AlphaGo and the CEO Cho Tae-kwon. [JOONGANG ILBO]

LPGA hall of famer Pak Se-ri will be awarded the Korea Image Stepping Stone Award at CICI Korea 2017, an award ceremony honoring those who contributed in spreading Korea’s image this year.

The legendary golfer was honored for her role in showing the potential of Korean golfers upon her debut on the LPGA Tour and winning multiple tournaments, according to the nonprofit organization Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) which hosts the event. Her role in providing support to Korean golf players as a coach (at the Rio Olympics) was also recognized.

The Korea Image Stepping Stone Bridge Award went to AlphaGo. The Google Deep Mind’s artificial-intelligence program was honored for connecting Korea and the world by bringing the world’s attention to Korea through the Go competition with Lee Se-dol.

CEO Cho Tae-kwon of Kwangjuyo Group, which makes porcelain, liquor and runs Korean restaurants, won the Korea Image Firestone Award. Cho, whose restaurants Gaon and Bicena each earned stars from the Michelin Guide, was recognized for his role in growing Korea’s food culture over the last 30 years.

The annual award ceremony is set to take place on Jan. 11. It will be held at the Grand InterContinental Hotel in southern Seoul at 6 p.m. Some 700 attendants are expected to show up for the upcoming event.

BY JIN MIN-JI [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]