Slovenian athletes' parents walked marathons in support of the Winter Olympics

Live on February 8 , "For us, today is China Day!" The parents of Slovenian cross-country skier Anita Clementić said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency on the 6th.

On the same day, clementic and his wife set off from the Chinese Embassy in Slovenia and walked 7 hours and 45 kilometers back to their home in the village of Zvirs in the northwest of the capital, and on the way, they also made a special trip to a Chinese restaurant to eat, hoping to support their daughter Anita who is participating in the Winter Olympics and the Beijing Winter Olympics.

"The opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics was great and impressive, and if your kids are attending the opening ceremony, it feels completely different." Dejan Clementic, a police officer's father, said.

"Ten years ago, I promised my two daughters that if any of them could compete in the Olympics in the future, I would walk home from the Olympic arena." De young said.

"It was the COVID-19 pandemic that 'saved' me," Dejan joked, "knowing that Slovenia is thousands of miles away from China, so I decided to just symbolically fulfill my promise and walk home from the Chinese embassy." ”

"The COVID-19 pandemic has caused us a lot of inconvenience, we can't go to the scene to cheer for our daughter, Anita also contracted the new crown virus last month, fortunately, the test result was negative before leaving." De young said.

"Both of my daughters practice cross-country skiing and Anita has been training for 17 years and has paid a lot for the sport. If she can make it to the top 30 of the Winter Olympics, it's like a gold medal for me. "Anita, who has never played in the Winter Olympics before, said she enjoyed playing in China. ”

Anita's sister Nina said: "My sister and I have been practicing skiing since childhood, I have participated in the Winter Youth Olympics in Norway, my sister has participated in 6 World Youth Ski Championships and 12 cross-country skiing World Cups, and the 8th happens to be my father's birthday, I wish my sister good results." ”

On February 8, Anita will compete in the women's individual sprint cross-country skiing at the Beijing Winter Olympics.

Although Slovenia has a land area of only about 20,000 square kilometers and a population of 2.1 million people, the diverse geographical environment has created a character of Slovenians who love sports and nature. Slovenia has achieved good results in skiing, rock climbing, basketball, cycling and other sports. The excellent ski slopes of the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia attract a large number of ski enthusiasts every year.

At the Winter Olympics, Slovenia sent a total of 42 athletes to participate in 6 events, and as of the 7th, it has achieved two gold and one bronze.

"Congratulations on the successful hosting of the Beijing Winter Olympics." De young said.

(Xinhua News Agency)