By Jane Chung

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (Reuters) - A Canadian athlete competing at the Winter Olympics has been charged with stealing a car in the early hours of Saturday morning, South Korean police said.

A police official in charge of international crime at Gangwon Provincial Police Agency said the athlete, his wife and manager had gotten into an unlocked car which had been left unoccupied with the engine running in Pyeongchang.

The official said the manager then drove off with the car before it was stopped by police. The manager has additionally been charged with drunk driving.

Once the investigation is complete the results would be sent to the prosecution, the official said, adding that unless the alleged offence was deemed a serious crime, they would be able to leave the country after paying a fine.

At a news conference on Saturday, Canadian Olympic Committee CEO Chris Overholt said they were aware of the situation but declined to confirm the identities of the three.

"We can confirm that an incident occurred involving the police around midnight Friday or early morning Saturday," said Overholt.

"We have confirmation that individuals attached to our team are involved in the investigation and are cooperating. We take this matter very seriously.

"However, until we know the results of the investigation we're not really in a position to comment further."

(Additional reporting by Peter Rutherford; Editing by Mark Bendeich)