Wu Dajing (top) reporter Ni Minzhe photo Fan Kexin (part 2) reporter Wang Xianmin photo
Qi Guangpu reporter Wei Zheng photographed
Not to live up to Shaohua, not to live up to the times. On the stage of competitive sports, we pay tribute to the strong, and pay tribute to the brave people who still stick to the arena and pursue their dreams without regrets under the passage of time.
At the Beijing Winter Olympics, the rise of Gu Ailing, Su Yiming, Li Wenlong and other "post-00s" is gratifying, and the spirit of the young generation daring to fight and dare to compete for gold and silver is worthy of praise. What is even more admirable and remembered is the gold medal glory that Wu Dajing and Fan Kexin insisted on; it was Xu Mengtao, Jia Zongyang, and Qi Guangpu who insisted on "soaring into the sky"; it was Cai Xuetong and Liu Jiayu's firm belief in striving to forge ahead...
These veterans who have double confrontation with opponents and years have had brilliant records, but they still pay more hardships and efforts, climbing from one peak to another, writing a scene of Chinese ice and snow legends that are tenacious and chasing dreams.
"Fortunately, I didn't give up..."
"Fortunately, I didn't give up..." Mr. Wu said after winning the first gold for the Chinese delegation on February 5. He couldn't help but choke up, and Fan Kexin, who fought alongside him, shed tears several times.
Thanks to Wu Dajing and Fan Kexin, it is their persistence that makes short track speed skating, an advantageous sport of China's ice and snow sports, shoulder the heavy responsibility again.
This is Wu Dajing's third Winter Olympics. In these four years, he has shaken, and even had a brief renunciation. But in the end, when he chose to persevere and win his second Winter Olympic gold medal, he explained how strong the power of persistence is. "Thank you for not giving up on me, thank you to the leadership, thank you to your family, and thank me even more." Wu Dajing's speech after the game was moving.
From a blank piece of paper to 1 silver and 1 bronze at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, to the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics to win gold, people have seen the arduous journey of Wu Dajing climbing to the peak. After sliding into the final in the men's 1,000 meters, he and his teammates Ren Ziwei and Li Wenlong staged the struggle song of the three generations of "old, middle and young" athletes. In the case of more than half of the taxi being recalled to replay and consuming a lot of physical energy, Wu Dajing still scrambled to a favorable position, and patted Ren Ziwei's back when he was physically insufficient, so that when the young players rushed to the front, they did not forget to struggle to get stuck behind them...
Such a scene is enough to make people cry, and the interpretation of team strength on the field is undoubtedly a portrayal of the new journey of contemporary Chinese youth.
Compared with Wu Dajing, Fan Kexin may have a greater responsibility. Since joining the national team in 2010, she won the World Championship at the age of 17, but she waited for the winter Olympic gold medal for 12 years! "This gold medal, I have waited too long and too long..." A simple sentence, can not exhaust her experience over the years. Unlike Wu Dajing, who has a rising star like Ren Ziwei behind him, Fan Kexin and the Chinese short track speed skating women's team have not achieved ideal results in the world in this cycle, but this is not a reason for her to back down, "I always believe in my team, we will not be afraid of anyone, no matter what kind of opponent we face, we are all a goal: rushing!" ”
The "92 years old" group won the silver medal
Xu Mengtao, Jia Zongyang, Qi Guangpu, three "post-90s" players in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics turned out. At the Beijing Winter Olympics, all three became veterans, aged 92 years, and won 100 medals on the world stage.
With these glories in mind, the three veterans will appear at the freestyle ski aerial skills mixed team final on the evening of February 10. Xu Mengtao, 31, Qi Guangpu, 31, and Jia Zongyang, 30, all have the highest difficulty in the world, are all world championship winners, and they have all won gold medals at the Winter Olympics in four times. But the regret of never winning a gold medal at the Winter Olympics has made them full of strong desire for gold medals.
There were six competitions in two rounds, and all three of them played well, but Jia Zongyang failed when he landed on the second jump, and the scene of the three veterans holding their heads and crying after the game was moving. This precious silver medal also embodies the hardships of their four years of preparation, and still shines with the veteran's responsibility and sports dreams.
Xu Mengtao won a silver medal at the Sochi Winter Olympics, but missed the podium at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. After the ups and downs, she has a calm attitude, and the "peach" in everyone's eyes has matured. In the first appearance of the Beijing Winter Olympics, Xu Mengtao did it - the second jump, she showed her style, once again completed the world's highest difficulty move for women, and made a good start with the Chinese team with 106.03 points.
Unfortunately, it happened to Jia Zongyang, a veteran who has also participated in four Winter Olympics, won the bronze medal at the Sochi Winter Olympics and the silver medal at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, perhaps it was too much pressure, or perhaps the opponent sacrificed a sudden 5.0 difficult move, he made a mistake when he landed in the final stage, and only scored 96.02 points. Looking at the scores played on the big screen, Jia Zongyang's eyes were red, and Xu Mengtao on the side held his teammates and kept comforting.
Qi Guangpu, who is the same age as Xu Mengtao, won the overall title of aerial skills at the 2010/11 and 2016/17 freestyle skiing world cups, and was also the champion of the 2013 and 2015 freestyle skiing world championships. He has participated in the Winter Olympics three times and has not won a medal. At the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, Qi Guangpu finally achieved a breakthrough.
The veterans still have the opportunity to compete individually, and they look forward to realizing their dreams in Beijing and achieving their wishes, but the flag of the Winter Olympics has long left their glory.
"Constantly pushing the limits, I did..."
"It's sad not because I didn't get a medal, but because the set of actions I wanted to do the most was not done." Cai Xuetong said.
On February 10, four times out of the Winter Olympics snowboarding U-shaped field event, 28-year-old Cai Xuetong and 29-year-old Liu Jiayu re-started, and the two finally ranked fourth and eighth respectively. Although they failed to stand on the podium, the veterans' constant challenge to themselves and their unrepentant character were touching.
China's snowboard U-shaped track skills have not been developed for a long time, and Liu Jiayu and Cai Xuetong are almost witnesses to the development of the project at the same time. It is their efforts that have made the world aware of China, and their names are constantly being written on one record after another.
At the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Liu Jiayu won the silver medal in the women's snowboard U-shaped field, creating the history of the project for China. Cai Xuetong, who won the fifth place, once thought about giving up and leaving for a while to study, but she soon found herself inseparable from skiing, and her love for skiing made her return and get back on the road.
"If you like it, you won't be afraid of difficulties." With such a belief, Cai Xuetong Phoenix Nirvana, in this season's World Cup field, won 1 gold and 1 silver, and won the first place in the world cup total points.
Coming to the Beijing Winter Olympics, Cai Xuetong is full of expectations for medals and even gold medals, but her greater goal is to show the highest difficulty, the best self, and the greatest potential. "The last slide didn't work out, otherwise it might have turned out a little better." Cai Xuetong is a little sorry, but in the second round of the final showed the highest difficulty of 1080 moves, everyone's Mind Cai Xuetong, worthy of the glory of the world's first.
The eighth place in the Beijing Winter Olympics, in terms of ranking alone, is not "friendly" to Liu Jiayu, but she still smiled after the game, looking back on the journey behind her, she did not want to mention too much about those injuries - even once coughed will lead to shoulder dislocation - these pains and tiredness have become her unique feats.
"I love snowboarding, I love skiing, I've been through four Winter Olympics, I've been pushing the limits, I've done it, I've been happy every day." In the first two rounds of the final, Liu Jiayu made a mistake, but she insisted on successfully completing the game in the last slide and gave herself an explanation. "Enjoying what can be done now, but also firmly reinforcing my dream that I must go to the next four years." ( Reporter Wang Xiangna)
Source: China Sports News