WASHINGTON, December 15. /TASS/. Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov congratulated Russia’s famous forward Alexander Ovechkin, who plays for NHL’s Washington Capitals, on receiving the prestigious Wayne Gretzky International Award by the US Hockey Hall of Fame for his contribution to ice hockey.

"Let me sincerely congratulate you on receiving the Wayne Gretzky award. No doubt, this prize, which will add to your rich collection of individual and team trophies, represents another clear proof of your status as one of the best hockey players in the entire history of this marvelous game," Antonov said in a letter posted on the Russian diplomatic mission’s Twitter account.

The ambassador stressed that over the past 15 years Ovechkin "has been considered as the most popular athlete of Washington." "At the same time, while being the world’s greatest athlete, you are a true patriot of Russia. At the first opportunity, despite the fatigue and injuries, you seek to wear our national team’s uniform at major international competitions," Antonov said, wishing the athlete "further successes, victories and new records at the ice arena and beyond".

The Wayne Gretzky International Award was established in 1999. It honors international athletes who have made major contribution to developing and advancing ice hockey in the United States. Ovechkin is the tenth recipient of this prize. In 2008, legendary Soviet ice hockey player and coach Anatoly Tarasov was given this prize postmortem.

Ovechkin was selected by the Capitals first overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. He won his first Stanley Cup in 2018. Over his career, the hockey star has played 1,117 games, scoring 1,244 points. In 2004-2019, Ovechkin played for the Russian national team at 12 world championships, winning three gold, two silver and four bronze medals.