A former world champion boxer was sentenced to six months in prison Thursday on charges of sexually harassing a woman at a Seoul restaurant earlier this year.

The Seoul Central District Court handed down the sentence to the 58-year-old man, surnamed Moon, and ordered him to complete 40 hours of a sexual offender treatment program.

Moon was indicted on charges of inappropriately touching a body part of a woman who was dining at a table beside his at a restaurant in southern Seoul in June.

Moon claimed he did not sexually harass the woman and was only trying to protect himself because she cursed and hit him first.

The court, however, dismissed his claim, saying that the surveillance footage of the restaurant matches the victim's testimony.

"The nature of his crime is very bad in that he did not hesitate to commit the crime at a public place," the court added, noting the victim has complained of humiliation and mental distress and requested a stern punishment for the accused.

The accused also inflicted secondary damage on the victim by attempting to cover up the case by coaxing and pressuring her, the court said.

Moon won a gold medal in boxing at the 10th Asian Games held in Seoul in 1986 and a world champion title before retiring in the 1990s. (Yonhap)