Beijing, 27 Jan (Xinhua) -- The list of the Chinese delegation participating in the Beijing Winter Olympics was officially announced on 27 January. Wu Dajing, Sui Wenjing, Han Cong, Jia Zongyang and other medalists of previous Winter Olympic Games will once again march towards the podium; Gu Ailing, Ning Zhongyan, Su Yiming and other Olympic "recruits" are expected to set off a youth storm, and more young athletes with Olympic dreams will ride the east wind of the Beijing Winter Olympics to share the Olympic glory for the first time and fight for the breakthrough of the project.
Wu Dajing strives to defend the title of "onion barrel" and looks forward to going further
At the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics four years ago, Wu Dajing won the only gold medal for the Chinese delegation in the short track speed skating men's 500 meters event with an unshakable advantage. In this home battle, the 27-year-old Wu Dajing, although his dominance has declined, is still one of the favorite candidates to win the championship in this project.
Ren Ziwei, who is 3 years younger than Wu Dajing, has become the new leader of China's short track speed skating team. In the four World Cup matches this season, he is the most stable player of the Chinese team, and he is an absolute main player in the men's 1000 meters, 1500 meters, 500 meters three single events, men's relay and mixed relay events. Four years ago in Pyeongchang, Ren Ziwei won the silver medal in the 5,000-meter relay with the Chinese men's team. This time, his goal was to target the gold medal.
Also looking to turn the silver medal into a gold medal are the Chinese figure skating team's pair skating stars Sui Wenjing/Han Cong. Four years ago, the "onion barrel combination" that debuted on the stage of the Winter Olympics regrettably won the silver with a difference of 0.43 points, and this time they will once again hit the crown at home.
Snowboarding U-shaped track star Liu Jiayu and freestyle skiing aerial skill player Jia Zongyang are also silver medalists at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. At the Beijing Winter Olympics, these two "elders of the four dynasties" are still the top soldiers for their respective events.
Joining Liu Jiayu will be Cai Xuetong, who is also competing in the Winter Olympics for the fourth time. From Vancouver to Sochi to Pyeongchang, Cai Xuetong's ranking has risen higher and higher. In this season's World Cup series, 28-year-old Cai Xuetong won the championship again, and she and Liu Jiayu will form a gold rush "double insurance" for the Chinese team.
Veterans of the fourth Winter Olympics are Xu Mengtao and Qi Guangpu of freestyle skiing aerial skills, who will attack the champions of the three sub-events of aerial skills men', women's and mixed teams together with Kong Fanyu and Wang Xindi.
Gu Ailing, Ning Zhongyan and Su Yiming led the youth storm
Heroes from ancient times out of youth. In the list of Chinese delegations participating in the Beijing Winter Olympics, Gu Ailing, Ning Zhongyan and Su Yiming are all key players who are expected to make a splash when they go out for the first time.
Gu Ailing, 18, is already one of the most popular athletes for sports fans in the Chinese legion. With its outstanding record, beautiful appearance and calm conversation, Gu Ailing's popularity has soared in the past two years and has been popular with advertisers. At the Beijing Winter Olympics, Gu Ailing had the possibility of hitting the gold medal in the three sub-events of freestyle ski jumping, U-shaped track and slope obstacle course, and his performance was expected.
Like Gu Ailing, the 22-year-old Ning Zhongyan also ushered in an outbreak in the Beijing Winter Olympic cycle. In the men's 1500m and 1000m events of speed skating, which chinese men have been dormant for many years, Ning Zhongyan has emerged and won two golds and two silvers in this season's World Cup. At the Beijing Winter Olympics, he and Pingchang Winter Olympics men's 500m bronze medalist Gao Tingyu's "Twin Stars" are the biggest attractions of the Chinese speed skating team.
Su Yiming, 17, is one of the youngest players in the Chinese delegation and has rewritten the history of ice and snow sports in China with his victory at the Snowboard Jumping World Cup. At the Beijing Winter Olympics, he is likely to continue to surprise us.
Those new faces to look forward to
At this Winter Olympics, a total of 131 Chinese athletes participated for the first time. Many of them may not be able to compete for gold and silver, but their efforts to surpass themselves are also worth looking forward to.
In the Nordic biathlon event, China started late and has never qualified for the Winter Olympics before. At the FIS Nordic Biathlon Intercontinental Cup in November 2021, Zhao Jiawen finished 22nd in the men's individual standard platform + 10 km cross-country skiing competition, a precious ticket for the Chinese team to the Winter Olympics, and the young Chinese Nordic biathlon team will achieve the "Winter Olympic debut" in history at the Beijing Winter Olympics. As a "post-00s" young athlete, Zhao Jiawen received cross-country skiing training at the age of 12, and then entered the Nordic two-sport training team through cross-discipline selection, which will also be his personal Winter Olympic debut.
The World No. 32 Chinese men's ice hockey team will also embark on its first Trip to the Winter Olympics. Although their strength is very different from the top five opponents in the world, Canada, the United States and Germany, the winter Olympic debut of Chinese men's ice has an incalculable significance for the further popularization of Chinese ice hockey. The team's captain is 36-year-old veteran Ye Jinguang, who has played in the NHL, KHL and other top hockey leagues. The best ever record of the Chinese women's ice hockey team was the fourth place in the Nagano Winter Olympics, and this competition was divided into Group B. Yu Baiwei, Liu Zhixin, Zhang Mengying and other members of the Chinese women's team are participating in the Winter Olympic Games for the second time, and their experience will increase the confidence of the Chinese team to compete with strong teams.
In the alpine skiing event, the Chinese team qualified for all 11 sub-events, and 4 people qualified for the competition, all of which created history. Among them, China has never had a competitor to participate in the speed event to achieve a breakthrough, men's and women's downhill, super big slalom and all-around events will have Chinese players to participate.
The four members of the Chinese team, Kong Fanying, Ni Yueming, Zhang Yangming and Xu Mingfu, who qualified for the competition this time, have never been exposed to the speed project before. The super big slalom race can reach speeds of 100 kilometers per hour, and the downhill can even reach more than 130 kilometers. Coming from a technical project, they quickly completed the conversion in a limited time, achieving a breakthrough for China.
In addition, men's bobsleigh player Fan Duoyao and women's bobsleigh player Huai Mingming have both set the best record in the history of the Chinese team in this season's World Cup, and I believe they will bring us new surprises.
Writer: Wang Jingyu
Participating reporters: Lin Deren, Wang Qinou, Zhou Wanpeng, Qin Jing, Huang Haoran, Sun Zhe, Wang Yong
Editors: Shuwen, Wu Bowen, Wu Junkuan, Wu Yuqi (Intern)
(Xinhua News Agency)