Pretoria - The South African Wayne van Niekerk, gold medalist and world record holder in the 400 meters, was named best male athlete of the Rio-2016 Olympic Games, according to local media.

The Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) held last night the awards gala at the Doha Convention Center, Qatar, where it also recognized Puerto Rican tennis player Monica Puig as best female athlete.

The teams of Women's Hockey, from United Kingdom, and male's Rugby Seven, from Fiji, were proclaimed as the best in Rio-2016 during the ceremony in Doha.

Puerto Rico, Fiji, Bahrain, Ivory Coast, Jordan, Kosovo, Singapore, Tajikistan and Vietnam received a special award for their first Olympic gold medals, among other prizes.

The Association of National Olympic Committees is a non-governmental organization that is made up of organizations of its kind recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).