Following factional feuds within South Korea's national skating federation, An won Russian citizenship in 2011 in a bid to find a new home where he could focus on his training. An shot up to stardom in his new home by grabbing three more gold medals at the Sochi Winter Olympics.

An has won more Olympic gold medals in short track than anyone in history.

Still active, he was widely expected to visit the Winter Games hosted in his original home country for his swan song after winning a silver medal in the men's 500 meters at the 2018 European Championships earlier this month.

But his career apparently faces another hurdle.

In December, the International Olympic Committee banned Russia from taking part in the PyeongChang Winter Olympics following an alleged state-led doping scandal. Instead, athletes without traces of unapproved drugs were welcomed to participate as Olympic Athletes from Russia.

The Russian flag and anthem, however, are still banned at the games.

Earlier this month, the IOC said it carried out "extra scrutiny" on athletes from Russia in order to ensure drug-free competitions.

The so-called McLaren report revealed that more than 1,000 Russian athletes were involved in a large-scale, systematic doping program over five years, a time period covering the Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia. (Yonhap)