On February 15, at the freestyle ski women's aerial skills award ceremony, Xu Mengtao, who won the gold medal in four Winter Olympic Games, burst into tears.
Love can last for years. At the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, many veterans stuck to the field and dreamed. Some of them won gold and silver and shone on the field; some regretted ending the curtain, but they could also leave with a smile.
On February 5, the speed skating women's 3,000 meters, 49-year-old German veteran Peschstein played, this is her eighth time to stand on the Winter Olympics, and became the most female athlete in history to participate in the Winter Olympics.
Xu Mengtao, 31, who has won 27 World Cup races, is the first person in the history of the Women's Aerial Skills World Cup. In her career, she has won almost all the championships she can win, except for the lack of the heaviest Winter Olympic gold medal. After the defeat of Pyeongchang Chong Jin, it is not that she did not think of giving up, but the yearning for the Olympic champion still made her resolutely choose to fight again. "Am I number one?" Xu Mengtao's post-match shouts were moving. Four Winter Olympics, 12 years of long waiting, finally in Beijing to realize the dream.
On February 10, the women's U-shaped track skills final on snowboarding. The Spanish flag bearer, the 32-year-old veteran Castellet, finished runner-up and finally reached the podium at the Winter Olympics.
She finished first from the bottom, and when she slid across the finish line, she raised her arms and the audience applauded her. The 49-year-old eight-time Olympic "elder" Peschstein standing on the ice is a legend: the oldest female Winter Olympic player in history, the female athlete who has participated in the Winter Olympics the most times in history, has won a total of 5 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze in the past seven sessions. "I was smiling and sliding across the finish line." After the women's 3000m race, Peschstein's voice trembled slightly, "Today, my results are no longer important, I skated to the finish, I am extremely proud of myself. ”
On February 9, in the women's steeplechase final of snowboarding, Jacobelis stood on the Winter Olympics for the fifth time and finally won the coveted Winter Olympic championship. At 36 years and 174 days, Jacob Baylis also became the oldest Winter Olympic snowboard gold medalist. She is the only full-time athlete in the veneers sculpting event since entering the Winter Olympics in Turin in 2006. In Turin she won the silver medal and in Pyeongchang she was fourth.
On the road to chasing dreams, regardless of age, keep loving, and be full of spirit. For many veterans, coming to Beijing is a victory, and their love and persistence touch people's hearts.
On February 8, the women's individual sprint race in cross-country skiing was played by 46-year-old Brazilian veteran Jacqueline Moran. She participated as an athlete in five Winter Olympics and three Summer Olympics, including the 2008 Beijing Olympics, making her the only athlete to participate in the Beijing Olympics and the Beijing Winter Olympics.
Veterans are not old, and their spirits are evergreen. Veterans, see you next time!
On February 12, During the men's individual ski jumping competition, Polish star Kamil Söch stepped onto the Winter Olympics for the fifth time. At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Stoch became the third athlete in history to win two gold medals in the men's individual ski jumping event at the same Olympic Games. At the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, he defended his title as ski jumper and men's individual big jump champion.
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Client The Winter Olympics | Reporter Wang Chen
Edited by Kang Dian
Process Editor Wu Yue