On the evening of February 11, Yan Wengang finally soared at a speed of 129 kilometers on the track of the "Snow Tour Dragon" at the National Bobsleigh Center. He fought for the Sochi Winter Olympics and Russian Olympic Committee player Trediakov won the precious bronze medal. From the ignorant teenager on the track and field field in 2015 to the medal won in the Winter Olympics today, Yan Wengang, who has a stable personality and is hard-working, has crossed multiple thresholds such as technology, psychology and experience all the way to help China Ice and Snow stand at the top position in the steel frame snowmobile project.
Yan Wengang is a native of Tianjin and was born in 1997. From a young age, Yan Wengang's family wanted him to have a good body, so Yan Wengang embarked on athletics. After practicing the long jump for seven years, Yan Wengang's explosive strength trained on the track and field field was valued by the steel frame snowmobile coaching team. In 2015, in a cross-border cross-border material selection event held in Yanqing, Beijing, Yan Wengang finally hitched a ride from the Summer Olympics to the Winter Olympics. Although he has the physical qualities necessary to engage in the starting of a steel frame snowmobile, Yan Wengang has to pass one pass after another. When I first started practicing steel frame snowmobiles, it was common for my whole body to be bruised because of strange movements. On the one hand, he was scarred by back pain, and on the other hand, he had to get up early to exercise and lie on the sled to train. Yan Wengang gritted his teeth and survived.
Then there's the psychological barrier. At the beginning of the establishment of the steel frame snowmobile, many team members did not dare to continue to dive and slide after sliding on the car. Sliding down at high speed in an ice-faced snow trough with a drop of 100 meters brings more fear than enjoyment. Geng Wenqiang, a steel-frame snowmobile player, once admitted that in the first few months, every few days, he would have the idea of retreating.
Yan Wengang was no exception at first, twisting his body to drive the corner during the snowmobile. The steel frame snowmobile is extremely sensitive in the taxi, and a little action will cause an offset. Only those who remain calm and relaxed in the high-speed taxi can slide smoothly.
Although this is the opposite of ordinary people's reaction to extreme speed, it is a hurdle that Yan Wengang and his teammates must pass. Encouraged by the coach, Yan Wengang slowly began to enjoy the process of each high-speed taxi after mastering the gliding skills. "If you think too much, you will hit it badly, so you must devote yourself, focus, and constantly improve your level by sliding again and again." Yan Wengang said.
Like teammate Geng Wenqiang, Yan Wengang also helped the Chinese steel frame snow team move forward again and again through the competition. In 2018, Yan Wengang won the first European Championship in the history of China's steel frame snowmobile at the European Cup King's Lake Station, breaking the monopoly of German players on the championship and boosting the confidence of the Chinese steel frame snow team.
In the new season, Yan Wengang's World Cup performance is not eye-catching, but the silence of this period also allows him to seek opportunities for breakthroughs by looking for his own shortcomings. Before the Beijing Winter Olympics, the steel frame snowmobile national team organized a domestic selection competition with strict conditions, and only the top two could represent China in the Winter Olympics. Yan Wengang finally won the "four choices two" competition with Yin Zheng and qualified to represent the Chinese team at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
After staying in Yanqing Winter Olympic Village, Yan Wengang and his teammates began to participate in the official training of the Winter Olympics. For this track, Yan Wengang has long been familiar with it, and even every track detail and every corner angle has been deeply engraved in his mind. Yan Wengang said he skated more than 500 times on the track to give himself full home advantage. In the final round of the men's steel frame snowmobile, Yan Wengang let go and slid a personal best of 1 minute 0.15 seconds to win the bronze medal in the project, achieving a historic breakthrough for Chinese athletes in the steel frame snowmobile event at the Winter Olympics.
Looking back at the preparation process of Yan Wengang and the Chinese steel frame snow team, the team showed strong strength at the Winter Olympics. The National Bobsleigh Center has a training hall where you can train from summer to winter. It is here that Yan Wengang perfected the details of the technical actions in the departure stage. Looking back at Yan Wengang's sliding record, his results are the most stable. The familiarity of playing at home and the confidence brought by countless trainings finally helped Yan Wengang rush to the podium. It is believed that as Yan Wengang and other players continue to wear medals in the project, China's steel frame snowmobile sports will also reach new heights.
Text/Beiqing Sports Chu Peng