SEOUL-- Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup met with high jumper Sgt. Woo Sang-hyeok on Monday to commend him for winning the silver medal at the world championships last week, Lee's ministry said.

Woo, who is serving his mandatory military service at the Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps, grabbed the silver at the World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, last Monday. It marked the best-ever showing by a South Korean at the competition.

"I am proud of Sgt. Woo for raising the honor of South Korea and the military, and moving the people and giving them hope," Lee was quoted as saying by his office.

The 26-year-old is set to be discharged from his service in September.

All able-bodied South Korean men are required to serve in the military for about two years in a country that constantly faces North Korea's military threats.

Source: Yonhap News Agency