"If I'm not happy, as soon as I skate, the trouble will be gone." If I'm happy, as soon as I skate, my happiness doubles. Hu Changli, 58 years old this year, has been skating every day every winter since he was 7 years old, frantic about ice.
Draw a circle on the right foot, followed by another circle on the left foot. Five times like this, a five rings on the ice was drawn on the Shichahai Ice Rink in an instant. This is Hu Changli's "unique job" on ice, and it is also his unique blessing for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.
"Many ice lovers want to learn to draw the five rings on ice, but no second person can draw them." The reason why Hu Changli "spoke wildly" stemmed from years of study and study of figure skating.
In the 1980s, Chinese sports delegations participated in the Winter Olympics for the first time. Since then, Hu Changli, as an ice fan, has begun to deliberately practice the "Olympic Five Rings" logo. "Sometimes one big and one small, sometimes it is not easy to close, and it took three or four years of repeated practice to draw the five rings." Hu Changli said.
Surrounded by rivers and lakes, the city of Beijing used to become a natural skating rink in the winter. Hu Changli is a native of Beijing, and when he was a child, he always looked forward to winter, and after school, he threw down his school bag and went to the ice rink. "At that time, skates were luxury goods, and whoever had a pair of skates was like whoever had a car now, and everyone played with a pair of shoes." Hu Changli grew up wearing his father's skates on the ice, the skates are too big, just tie a few ropes, but the old fall heel.
Owning a pair of skates of his own became Hu Changli's dream at that time. In 1985, the first year of work, Hu Changli saved nearly 3 months of salary, went to Wangfujing Lisheng Sports Commercial Building to see and see, and finally bought the first pair of knife skates in his life.
There are many masters on the ice rinks all over Beijing, and if you want to have a place among ice friends, you must have a unique skill. Hu Changli wears ball knife skates, plays with patterns, and calls himself "Ball Flower Hu". In his opinion, this is more challenging. Hu Changli studied diligently and asked whoever had a good action would be called a "master" or "big brother" and worshiped everywhere. "If you don't fall more than twenty times a day and don't collect the stalls, you have to learn."
Not only did he study the ice, Hu Changli also insisted on taking notes. "After the teacher said it, I like to write it on a small piece of paper with a pen, and I don't have anything to take it out to see." Coupled with year after year of ice practice, Hu Changli slowly learned various figure skating actions such as spinning and jumping.
Hu Changli also "chased the stars". World Figure Skating Championships Ice Dance Champion Meryl Davis and Davis White came to Beijing to tour, and he not only went to the scene, but also took a photo with them. "Ice Prince" Pushshenko came to Beijing to perform, and he specially asked for autographs.
For Hu Changli, skating is not only a hobby, but also a heritage. Hu Changli pursued to the extreme of skating, "A hundred years ago, wearing cotton pants and a watermelon hat, there was a 'double flying swallow' and 'stepping on the sky', this is an old Beijinger. A hundred years from now, if someone asks old Beijingers how to skate, I hope the answer is 'draw the five rings on ice'. Hu Changli said with a smile.
Once, at the Bayi Lake Ice Rink in Yuyuantan, Hu Changli saw a 92-year-old gentleman and asked his child to help him to the ice rink. The old man said, "Now I can't wear skates, and I have to go to the ice to see, and I am happy." Seeing this scene, Hu Changli was deeply moved, and cherished the opportunity on the ice even more, "Every time I slipped and was happy." ”
The joy of skating has continued among generations of Beijingers. Hu Changli took his son to ice when he was 3 years old and his daughter was 5 years old, taught them to play ice hockey, play figure skating, just like his father taught him.