As the best ice dance group in mainland China active in the international arena, Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu have always been noticed by ice fans who love them. At the Beijing Winter Olympics, they prepared two sets of different styles of programs on rhythm dance and free dance, especially in the free dance, the two will show Chinese kung fu, and the Chinese style elements are worth looking forward to. "We have added some oriental elements to the arrangement of music, such as the motility and melody of Chinese music; there are also patterns such as xiangyun on the costumes and the detailed design of Chinese costumes; in the arrangement of actions, we have compiled the gestures and gestures of Chinese kung fu into our program." Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu introduced.
Wang Shiyue (left) / Liu Xinyu at the Ice Dance Free Dance Competition.
The 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics is the first winter Olympic journey of the two, full of confidence but was hit head-on, after the rhythm dance score came out, the two ranked 22nd among the 24 pairs of participants, the regret of not being able to enter the free dance made the two moods instantly fall to the bottom, crying in the background, comforting and encouraging each other. The "Beijing Cycle" began with a trip to Canada, with the famous ice dance group Duberrell/Lauzon couple team, starting from scratch. "When we got there, we found that many of the movements we had originally practiced were wrong, including the grip, rotation, and posture of the hands. It took us more than a year to correct these wrong actions. Liu Xinyu said.
Wang Shiyue/Liu Xinyu, profile picture
The incompatibility of the surrounding environment and the long process of error correction when they first arrived abroad were also accompanied by the most frequent disputes between the two since their partnership. Liu Xinyu is a big warm man in his daily life, taking care of Wang Shiyue everywhere, but in training, he often has to distinguish between right and wrong. And Wang Shiyue is smart and clever, learning to move quickly, and never showing weakness. Talking about that experience, Wang Shiyue said: "When we first arrived in Canada, the two of us always quarreled, but the foreign teacher told us that no one in the double project was right or wrong, only two people completed the action well and got high scores. The concept of foreign teachers made the two fall into thinking, "We have both been adapting to this concept of foreign teachers, and we feel that foreign teachers are correct." After no longer dwelling on who was wrong, we also went to observe other high-level players who trained together and learned how to solve problems after encountering them. This process has helped us a lot. ”
The sudden outbreak of the new crown epidemic has allowed the two to end their training abroad ahead of schedule, and when they return home, they can only communicate with the coaching team in Canada through the Internet. Due to the time difference, they can only connect with foreign teachers in the morning and night, complete the necessary physical fitness and training during the day, and can only sleep five or six hours a day. "No game is the same for everyone, but the bigger problem for us is that the coach can't be on the sidelines, we are holding tablets every day to take online lessons. This situation has been almost two years, it is really quite painful, we have no other ideas, is to grit our teeth and insist. Wang Shiyue said.
From the blind rush forward when they were fledgling, to the re-starting after learning and precipitation, the "Beijing Cycle" two have made great progress in both thinking and sliding technology, especially in the understanding and interpretation of musical styles, and gradually occupied a place in the competition of international ice dance, and a few years ago, they even dared not think of the world's top ten. At the ITU Figure Skating Grand Prix in Italy last November, Wang Shiyue/Liu Xinyu first finished fifth with 73.28 points in rhythmic dance, which they were not good at before, and then scored 111.31 points in free dance, raising the world ranking to fourth with a total score of 184.59 points. The total score rose by more than 30 points, allowing the pair to build a lot of confidence in the "engine motor" that was once not optimistic about the outside world. Talking about the secret of progress, Liu Xinyu smiled and said, "Practice to death!" Liu Xinyu, who wears steel nails in his palms, will swell his hands after completing twenty or thirty lifts in each training session, but for the Winter Olympics, the steel nails supporting his hands will not be taken out until after the Winter Olympics.
Wang Shiyue / Liu Xinyu competes in Italy at the 2021-2022 ISU Figure Skating Grand Prix. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Jin Ma Mengni
I cried in pain, but I never thought about giving up. Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu look forward to achieving excellent results at the Beijing Winter Olympics, "We have always felt that we can make history for China, which is a goal that we have both always insisted on. The first team competition at the Beijing Winter Olympics, the two of us to do our best, can fight for one more point, our ranking may advance one place, we will go all out. In each category, we strive to skate out two sets of programs that satisfy ourselves and the audience. "Heaven rewards diligence, hard work is not deceived, Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu sharpen a sword in 4 years, will bloom strength and beauty at the Beijing Winter Olympics."