The Korea Skating Union revealed that Oh collided with a vehicle which was making a u-turn while he was riding his motorboke in the South Korean capital yesterday.

Oh was a member of the team which won the 5,000 metres relay race in the short track speed skating at the 2006 Olympics in the Italian city along with Ahn Hyun-soo, Lee Ho-suk, Seo Ho-jin and Song Suk-woo.

Shortly after the triumph, he announced his retirement from the sport.

Oh also clinched two International Skating Union (ISU) Speed Skating World Championships gold medals during his career on the ice.

The Seoul-born competitor was part of the gold medal-winning 5,000m relay team at the 2003 event in Warsaw, before claiming another title at the 2006 Team World Championships in Montréal.

Oh, also an Asian Games gold medallist at the 2003 edition of the quadrennial event in Misawa, earned two team silvers during his career as well as three bronze medals.

In Minneapolis in 2006, Oh secured the final spot on the podium in both the 1,500m and 3,000m races, his sole individual successes at World Championships.

It is the second tragedy to hit the South Korean speed skating community in three months. 

In April, former world short track speed skating champion Noh Jin-kyu died at the age of 23 after suffering from cancer.