June Huh, Princeton University professor and distinguished professor at Korea Institute for Advanced Study, on July 5 won the Fields Prize in Helsinki, Finland. (Yonhap News)

By Kim Eun-young and Lee Jihae

June Huh, a professor at Princeton University and distinguished professor at the Korea Institute for Advanced Study (KIAS), has received the Fields Medal, which is considered the Nobel Prize of mathematics.

Huh on June 5 in Helsinki, Finland, received the award during this year's International Congress of Mathematicians. The honor goes to people aged 40 or below for making major contributions to the field of mathematics.

Born in California in 1983, he moved to Korea at age 2 and eventually completed a master's degree there.

While completing his Ph.D. in the U.S., Huh proved two long-time complicated math ideas Read's and Rota's conjectures -- and was hailed as a mathematician who could lead the future.

In an interview with Korean media, he said, "Looking at the results and theses listed at the Fields Medal awards ceremony, I did many things alone but most of my research I did with my colleagues. So I believe that I won the award on their behalf."

"With this as an opportunity, I will further continue to live a life of more exciting research and study."

President Yoon Suk Yeol congratulated Huh for receiving the award, saying, "I commend professor June Huh for his efforts and passion toward challenging the limits of human intellect and opening new horizons for the expansion of the foundation of mathematics."

"Through active research activity with mathematicians at home and abroad, I hope that you become a compass that illuminates the path on the map of human intelligence."

Meanwhile, the Korean Mathematical Society (KMS) on July 5 announced before the awards ceremony that KIAS professor and KMS head Keum Jong-hae was elected to the executive committee of the International Mathematical Union. The committee comprises 11 members who make the organization's decisions.

eykim86@korea.kr