The Winter Olympics | Zhao Jiawen's two firsts

Six years ago, when Zhao Jiawen decided to transfer from cross-country skiing to Nordic biathlon, he did not expect to become the first Person in China to participate in the Winter Olympics in this event. What was even more unexpected was that at the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, he came to the Bird's Nest as one of the last two main torchbearers. These "impossibilities" have all become true in Beijing, the "city of the Two Olympics".

Zhao Jiawen has been practicing skiing since he was a child, and in his own words, he spends half of his time on the snow. In 2012, Zhao Jiawen was also a cross-country skier, and later, he suspended cross-country skiing training.

After the successful bid for the 2015 Beijing Winter Olympics, Zhao Jiawen's heart was ignited again. In 2016, he returned to the ski slopes and began experimenting with Nordic biathlon.

After practicing Nordic biathlon in 2016, Zhao Jiawen has not returned home in six years. Because of the difficulty of the project, the teammates around him gradually shrank from the initial 20 or so people to only 5 people. With a momentum to fight himself to the death, he persevered and did it.

Zhao Jiawen (first from right) in the Nordic biathlon men's individual standard platform + cross-country skiing 10 km.

Perseverance pays off naturally. In 2018, Zhao Jiawen participated in the Nordic Biathlon Intercontinental Cup with the team, competing in the men's individual standard platform + cross-country skiing 10 km event, and won the 38th place in the first competition. In the same season, he also tried to compete in the men's big jump + cross-country skiing 10 km event. Athletes often need to participate in training for about 5 years when they stand on the big jump platform, and he has only done this in two or three years.

On November 26, 2021, Zhao Jiawen finished 22nd in the Intercontinental Cup men's individual standard platform + cross-country skiing 10 km event held in Nizhny Tagil, Russia, locking in a Winter Olympic seat, and Chinese Nordic biathlon athletes stepped on the Olympic field for the first time. When he learned that he had qualified for the Beijing Winter Olympics, Zhao Jiawen burst into tears, and all the efforts were worth it.

On the evening of February 9, the Beijing Winter Olympics Nordic biathlon men's individual standard platform + cross-country skiing 10 km began the final competition. In the first ski jumping standard part, Zhao Jiawen jumped 81 meters and scored 59.5 points, temporarily ranking 42nd. According to the rules, the results of ski jumping will be converted into additional time for cross-country skiing competitions, and Zhao Jiawen will start cross-country skiing competitions 4 minutes and 56 seconds behind. In the end, Zhao Jiawen failed to improve his position in the cross-country skiing competition, finishing in 33 minutes 29 seconds 8, ranking 43rd.

Regardless of the final results, China's Nordic biathlon standing on the field of the Winter Olympics is a success, the opening ceremony raised the last torch, becoming the first Chinese Nordic biathlon Olympian, Zhao Jiawen's two firsts at the Beijing Winter Olympics will also be remembered for life.

For more information, please pay attention to the Winter Olympics.

Photo by Pan Zhiwang, reporter of the Winter Olympics

Source Client The Winter Olympics | Reporters Li Yuanfei, Chen Jiakun, and Deng Fangjia

Edited by: Kandian

Process Editor Tai Shaofeng