Alpine skiing men's downhill for the first training International Master praises the snow conditions of the track

Yanqing, Beijing, 3 Feb (Xinhua) -- Today, 56 athletes in the men's alpine skiing event at the Beijing Winter Olympics conducted their first official training, and many international athletes praised the snow conditions on the track.

The Beijing Winter Olympics is the first time that "Xue Feiyan" has hosted an international large-scale event. The new track presents a number of challenges for runners, including a total of 18 runners in the top three finishing times, all of whom made mistakes such as missing the flag gate, which will be cancelled in the main race.

However, the ranking of downhill training does not affect the order and ranking of the main race. Training is partly to help athletes familiarize themselves with the track, and on the other hand, it gives event organizers the opportunity to further evaluate the conditions of the track. Compared with other alpine skiing events, downhill racing has a larger track gap, a longer track, and the speed that athletes may achieve is faster, so it is called the "top sport" in alpine skiing, and it coexists with ornamentality and danger. Therefore, in alpine skiing competitions, only the official training before the downhill competition is mandatory for athletes to participate, and all rounds must be completed.

The first Austrian to appear on the day, Matthias Meier, the men's downhill at the Sochi Winter Olympics and the men's super slalom gold medalist at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, also missed two flag gates after the departure. He admits to being a little nervous: "I don't know much about the characteristics of this track yet, so I need to find the most suitable route in the taxi and I think I will be better prepared tomorrow." ”

Several runners expressed their approval of the snow conditions on the track. "It's one of the best pistes I've ever seen, but it's also very difficult." 2021 World Championships men's downhill and super big slalom double champion Vincent Knitchmayer said. American Bennett Bryce thinks the pistes are very similar to North American tracks: "The snow is hard and the skating speed is fast. It's like the track we had at the Beaver Creek World Cup and Colorado training. ”

China's Zhang Yangming and Xu Mingfu successfully passed all the flag gates and ranked 53rd and 55th respectively.

According to the International Snow Federation, official training in downhill competitions should be scheduled for at least three days, from February 3 to 5 for men and from February 12 to 14 for women. According to the plan, the men's downhill competition of the Beijing Winter Olympics will officially begin on the morning of February 6.

(Xinhua News Agency)