"The last time I won against Japan, I can't remember when." After the game, the Chinese female ice captain and 33-year-old veteran Bai Wei once cried. She bluntly said that this victory is of great significance, "We want to stand on the field with a new look and let the world see that we are a Chinese female ice skater in the new era, and we can do better." ”
On the 6th, the women's ice hockey competition at the Beijing Winter Olympics continued. Facing the strongest opponent in the group and the sixth ranked Japanese team in the world, the Chinese women's ice team completed the penalty shootout and won two consecutive victories in the group stage, and the qualifying situation was very good.
The Japanese team is determined to win this game.
Strong Asian neighbor
The last time Chinese women's ice hockey beat Japan in an international competition was in November 2008.
At that time, the Japanese team lost to the Chinese team in the Vancouver Winter Olympic Qualifiers, and they thought bitterly and formulated a 20-year long-term development plan. Years of cultivation have blossomed in the past two Winter Olympic cycles, and with the gradual improvement of the local semi-professional league and university league system, the competitive performance of the Japanese team has steadily improved. At the 2018 Winter Olympics, Japan beat European powerhouse Sweden to finish sixth in history. In 2021, Japan won the sixth place in the top group of the World Championships, and directly qualified for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games with the world ranking, becoming the first team in the history of Asian ice hockey to directly qualify for the Winter Olympics without passing the qualifiers.
There is no doubt that although it is also the fourth time to enter the main event of the Winter Olympic Games, compared with the World No. 20 Chinese team, the world's sixth-ranked Japanese women's ice paper strength has absolutely prevailed.
Unlike their European and American counterparts, the Japanese team's playing style is known as "little fast", and the technology is delicate and smooth. Half of the Japanese players who competed in the Winter Olympics this time participated in the Winter Olympics, and almost all of them have been on the stage of the top group of the World Championships, with rich experience and reasonable age structure, and the top five are even on the podium. In the previous two rounds, Japan beat Sweden 3-1 and 6-2 against Denmark, showing good form.
If the goal is to compete for the top three in the group and advance to the top 8, it is reasonable to say that this is a game that the Chinese team can "strategically give up".
Boiling Chinese players' seats.
Tenacious Chinese female ice
But the hosts refused to lose before the battle.
In the first two group matches, the performance of the Chinese women's ice team was equally eye-catching, and although the first game was regretted to lose against the European powerhouse Czech republic, the scene did not fall behind, and the second battle "killed" the Danish team was even more morale-boosting. Before the whistle was played against the Japanese team, the team members laughed in the locker room and made a grimace at the broadcast camera, which showed the relaxed mood.
"It's the sixth day of junior high school, and I'm sure I'll be playing well." Yu Baiwei joked after the game, "We are quite confident, after all, we are in front of the new year at the door." ”
After the game began, the Chinese team did not cower, but instead played against the opponent, and the number of effective shots in the first five minutes even led 4-1. Halfway through the first quarter, Zhang Mengying, the Chinese team's forward general and vice captain, was accidentally injured and was carried out of the arena on a stretcher, but the morale of the team remained undiminished. Unfortunately, there were less than 2 minutes left in the first quarter of the game, and the Japanese team took the lead and was scored by Hosoyama Tian Akane.
In the second quarter, the two sides continued to tit-for-tat, but neither achieved anything. Just 1 minute and 06 seconds into the opening of the third quarter, China's Rebecca's shot was blocked by the Japanese goalkeeper, and forward Hu Baozhen scored in front of the goal. Regular time ended and the two sides drew 1.
In extra time, the competition between the two sides became more intense, but they still failed to form a goal, and the game entered a penalty shootout. In the first three rounds, all six players failed to score the ball. In the fourth round, the Japanese player's penalty was blocked by Zhou Jiaying, while the Chinese player Miller scored the ball. In the fifth round, the Japanese player who came first missed the hand, and the Chinese team locked up the victory 2-1.
Chinese women's ice celebrate victory.
Approaching top 8 seats
At the moment of victory, all the members of the Chinese team rushed into the field and embraced each other excitedly. "The Japanese team was the hardest opponent in the group, but we didn't think about small points, goal differences or anything like that, we just wanted to fight like warriors. We just want to take the ball down. Yu Baiwei said.
Head coach Idarski said that sports competitions are not about rankings, but about hard work, "as long as you work hard, anyone can win." Zhou Jiaying, who has made 32 saves and made great achievements for the victory, also said that the world ranking is not important, "Here, every team is likely to win, no matter who the opponent is, we will have the confidence to win." ”
Talking about the key to winning, Yu Baiwei believes that the whole team has shown tenacious willpower in this game, "everyone fought to the end, every minute and every second did not relax, everyone did their duty and kept their positions." Idarski praised the players for perfectly executing the established tactics, "Although the opponent is strong, I know that if we limit the speed of the Japanese team, we have a chance." ”
After this battle, the Chinese team, which has achieved 2 wins and 1 loss, has a good qualifying situation. In the last game of the group on the evening of the 7th, as long as it does not lose to Sweden in the regular time, the Chinese team will lock in the top 8 place in advance. "Of course we will continue to fight for victory and then strive for better results on a higher stage." Yu Baiwei said. Idarski said that the Chinese women's ice skaters who compete with the host's "wild card" will prove themselves to be an excellent team at the "doorstep", "We deserve to stand here." ”
Source Beijing Daily Client | Reporter Wang Xiaoxiao Fang Fei
Editor Wang smiled
Process Editor Wu Yue