A figure skater practicing on the ice rink. Photo by Wang Lei
Chengdu, February 25 (Xinhuan) -- On the afternoon of the 24th, the Jiazhong Ice Sports Center in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, was bustling with nearly 10 figure skaters training. Gliding, jumping, spinning... They stepped on the ice knives and polished their movements over and over on the ice rink. From time to time, some team members fell on the ice, making a thudding sound of collision with the hard ice.
Although the Beijing Winter Olympics have come to an end, its successful holding shows the unique charm of many ice and snow sports such as curling, ice hockey, snowboarding, etc., and further ignites the enthusiasm of the whole people for ice and snow sports. In this wave of ice and snow boom, chengdu people are enthusiastic. In the indoor snow field in the city, you can see many people who are close to ice and snow.
A figure skater practicing on the ice rink. Photo by Wang Lei
The young figure skaters who train the ice rink are the members of the Sichuan Provincial Figure Skating Team formed by Fan Jidong, the head coach of Figure Skating in Sichuan Province, and his team. "There are a total of 14 members of the team, the youngest team member is less than 7 years old, and the oldest team member is 14 or 5 years old." Fan Jidong said that the team members have to train 6 days a week, in addition to land training, they also have to train on ice for more than 3 hours a day.
On the second floor, not far from the ice rink, it is a great place to observe the ice rink, and many parents also observe the performance of their children here. Xiong Xiaofeng, the mother of Mei Lanxin, a member of the Sichuan Provincial Figure Skating Team, watched from here, her gaze changing with her daughter's trajectory. "We sent her to learn figure skating in the hope of cultivating her ability to withstand pressure, tenacity and a spirit of not accepting defeat." Xiong Xiaofeng said that figure skating has brought Mei Lanxin not only the improvement of physical fitness, but also the improvement of concentration.
Mei Lanxin, 8, is already a veteran on the ice rink, while 5-year-old Fu Xiangdong has been involved in ice hockey since January this year. In the Canada Central Ice Sports Center, in addition to Fu Xiangdong, there are many children who are learning ice hockey and figure skating. They are a microcosm of the "ice and snow sports fever" set off by chengdu.
A teenager learning ice hockey on the ice rink. Photo by Wang Lei
"From the first few students to today's 70 or 80 students, more and more people are interested in ice hockey." Bai Quan, ice hockey coach at The Canadian Ice Sports Center, has been an ice hockey coach in Chengdu for 5 years. He said that as a competitive sport, ice hockey can not only strengthen the body, but also cultivate the strong character of children, so more and more Chengdu parents support their children to participate in ice hockey.
The successful holding of the Beijing Winter Olympics has also brought more southerners the opportunity to understand ice and snow sports. "Parents and children who did not know much about figure skating before, after the Winter Olympics, everyone had a lot of momentum, and the number of students who came to audition also increased a lot." Fan Jidong said.
"In recent years, there have been more and more ice rinks in Chengdu. Especially under the influence of the Beijing Winter Olympics, more and more schools and parents support ice and snow sports. Chen Jian, deputy researcher of the Youth Sports Department of Chengdu Municipal Sports Bureau and president of Chengdu Youth Sports Club Federation, said that under the grand vision of "driving 300 million people to participate in ice and snow sports", Chengdu will also hold various events such as Chengdu Youth Ski Championships, Chengdu Youth Ice Hockey Championships and Chengdu Youth Figure Skating Championships to promote the construction of a world famous event city. (End)