Yanqing, 8 Feb (Xinhua) -- On February 7, Chinese alpine skier Xu Mingfu crossed the finish line of the men's downhill race at the Beijing Winter Olympics, becoming the first Chinese athlete in history to participate in the winter olympic downhill competition and finish the race.
History is rewritten at this moment.
After the game, 24-year-old Xu Mingfu said when recalling his efforts to do so: I feel that when I am awake in the past two years, I am either skiing or practicing physical fitness. There was only one belief in my mind: I must participate in the most difficult downhill competition at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
In the afternoon, after the women's big slalom competition, standing next to the Xiaohaituo Alpine Ski Track, China's female athlete Kong Fanying still remembers the time when she fell the hardest.
"People fell outside the track net, and I was scared. I bit my tongue in my mouth and I was bleeding. ”
"I sat there crying and felt a little wronged. Practice this project and give yourself a broken picture. Later, after a break, I got up and went to slide again. ”
That training was extremely difficult, and Kong Fanying did not give up. This is the epitome of the hard work of the Chinese alpine ski team in the past four years in order to achieve the goal of participating in the alpine skiing event of the Beijing Winter Olympics.
According to reports, Chinese alpine skiers have mainly participated in the Winter Olympic slalom and big slalom technical sports in the past, and have never appeared in the speed competition of sliding, but have participated in the super big slalom competition of the Winter Olympics.
Liu Zhen, the leader of the Chinese team, said that the speed project is the most difficult, and along the way, it is full of hardships. "We have few competitive talents and start late, so we must continue to overcome various difficulties and challenges and make continuous progress." I am also often touched by the hard work of athletes, who are really not easy. ”
European and American athletes rarely practice both technical and speed sports, but the Chinese ski team is limited by the scarcity of talents, and can only select suitable athletes from technical projects to practice speed sports.
Liu Zhen said: "We are short of talent, we can only do both, which is really difficult for us athletes, but we must take this step." If you don't take this step, it's hard to take the next step. ”
Downhill skiing and super slalom are high-risk events, and injuries are often caused in both competition and training. At the beginning of training, Xu Mingfu broke his shoulder bone, and his teammate Zhang Yangming broke his leg.
"Alpine skiing is a sport for the brave and requires great courage and a strong psychological quality." Liu Zhen said, "Injuries in competitions and training are common things. ”
Hard work, Yuru Yucheng. Chinese athletes have finally achieved their goal of participating in the downhill competition at the Winter Olympics.
On the 7th, after Xu Mingfu ended the men's downhill competition, IOC President Bach gave him a signed watch, saying: It is not easy for Chinese athletes to complete the downhill competition, and I hope that the future competition will be more hard.
Liu Zhen believes that the reason why China's alpine skiing can make a breakthrough depends on the three conditions of time, location, and people.
Tianshi is based on the beijing Winter Olympic Games' goal of participating in the whole project, the state provides complete guarantee conditions for athletes to train and compete; the geographical advantage is to fight at the doorstep; and it is the unity and hard work of all participants, in order to achieve the goal of participation and struggle without distraction. This is undoubtedly the most important.
The Beijing Winter Olympics not only provide an opportunity for China's alpine skiing to achieve a breakthrough, but also provide a strong impetus for sustainable development in the future.
Liu Zhen said that "driving 300 million people to participate in ice and snow sports" will cultivate a large number of reserve talents for alpine skiing, and the Beijing Winter Olympics will also leave the world's top track for China. This track can not only provide training venues for Chinese athletes, but also host top events such as the World Cup and the World Championship, creating opportunities for exchanges between Chinese players and top foreign players.
He said that after achieving the goal of historic breakthrough, Chinese alpine skiers still have a long way to go, because there is still a huge gap between them and the top foreign athletes.
But with the help of the Beijing Winter Olympics, China's alpine skiing has made great progress, and the future is bright.
Liu Zhen said: "We have made a good start at the Beijing Winter Olympics and strengthened our confidence in moving forward. We want to do one place at a time, and fight one place at a time. For the sake of national honor, we go all out! ”
(Xinhua News Agency)