Winning Thailand's only gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics - and the country's first in taekwondo - has sealed the status of Panipak Wongpattanakit as a national treasure.

Five months after claiming the Olympic title in dramatic fashion, Wongpattanakit was named as the best female amateur athlete of 2021 by the Sports Authority of Thailand.

She received a trophy from Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha during a ceremony in Bangkok on December 16 - less than a fortnight after being appointed as a Women in Sports ambassador by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

After her Tokyo triumph in the women's under-49 kilograms flyweight category, Wongpattanakit returned home to a hero's welcome from adoring fans and the promise of almost THB20 million (£435,700/$608,000/€512,700).

The 23-year-old arrived in Phuket from the Japanese capital along with national coach Choi Young-seok and the rest of the Thai taekwondo team.

The new Olympic champion was met at the airport by her father, Phuket Governor Narong Wunsiew, and Taekwondo Association of Thailand President Pimol Srivikorn.

Wongpattanakit, overwhelmed by the support, claimed it was the best day of her life.

She and the team also received flowers and a message of support from Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana Rajakanya.

"It is meaningful that Wongpattanakit and I were able to give joy and encouragement with the gold medal to the people in Thailand suffering from the new coronavirus pandemic, as well as write a page in the country's sports history," South Korean-born Choi told the Yonhap news agency.

"I want to do the best in every competition," Wongpattanakit told the Bangkok Post.

"I want to be in the next Olympics in Paris, if I'm physically fit."

Wongpattanakit's stellar career has encompassed a strong commitment to the World University Games which has in turn sharpened her competitive powers.

At the 2017 Summer Universiade in Taipei, Wongpattanakit earned gold with victory over Turkey's Ipek Cidem in the flyweight competition.

Gold in the next weight category up that year, the under-53kg bantamweight class, went to Serbia's Rio 2016 under-49kg silver medallist - and later-to-be Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist - Tijana Bogdanovic.

Two years later, at the Palazetto Sport Casoria in Naples, the Thai athlete retained her Universiade title as she defeated Jhuang Tien-yu of Chinese Taipei in the final.

One of the bronze medals went to Ukraine's Iryna Romoldanova, who had won world under-46kg silver in 2015 and university gold at that weight two years earlier.           

By the time Wongpattanakit arrived in Tokyo, two years after that Naples victory, her formidable competitive record had established her as a strong favourite for gold.