China News Service, Shanghai, May 19 (Reporter Miao Lu Xing Chong) The Shanghai Station of the Paris Olympic Qualifying Series came to an end on the 19th. In this new Olympic event launched by the International Olympic Committee, Chinese youngsters in four emerging Olympic sports, skateboarding, rock climbing, break dancing and BMX freestyle, will move along the Huangpu Riverside to march towards the Olympic dream.
The women's BMX freestyle is the first final of this event, and the "post-00" girls of the Chinese team, Sun Sibei, Sun Jiaqi and Deng Yawen, defeated many European and American players to win the top three and "monopolize" the podium. In fact, this event was only launched in China in 2017, and in just a few years, Chinese athletes have frequently achieved outstanding results in international competitions, and the outside world is full of expectations for them to hit the medals and even gold medals at the Paris Olympics.
On May 18, the women's freestyle BMX final of the Paris Olympic Qualification Series Shanghai Station was held in Huangpu Binjiang, and Chinese athletes played well to win the top three. Photo by China News Service reporter Tang Yanjun
"We have achieved the results we have achieved today because we have helped each other in daily training and learned from each other's strengths. The emergence of the Chinese team has injected fresh blood into the development of the whole project. Deng Yawen said after the game that if he can qualify for the Paris Olympics, it will be a qualitative leap for the Chinese team and the development of this project in China.
Rock climbing events in China's speed shine in the arena. The 20-year-old won the women's event with a personal best of 6.54 seconds, her first time on the top podium in a world-class competition. Zhou Yafei will be selected for the national team training list in 2023 and has grown by leaps and bounds. In this competition, she continued to set new personal bests, and won the championship in the final with a time of 6.54 seconds to defeat Indonesian athletes.
On May 18, the women's climbing speed final of the Shanghai Station of the Paris Olympic Qualification Series was held in Huangpu Binjiang, and China's Zhou Yafei (left) won the championship with a time of 6.54 seconds. Photo by China News Service reporter Tang Yanjun
The other two "post-00" players Wu Peng and Wang Xinshang won the second and third places in the men's speed climbing event respectively. At the 2024 International Climbing Federation Climbing World Cup Wujiang Station not long ago, Wu Peng won the championship and broke the Asian record in 4.86 seconds. Although he lost 0.05 seconds to Indonesia's Leonardo in the final, his second place finish gave him an advantage in the Olympic qualification race.
In the break dancing field, the Chinese players also won the second place. In the men's group final, Qi Xiangyu, a teenager born in 2005, defeated the Dutch player 1:2 after three rounds of competition and won the second place. In 2023, Qi Xiangyu won the men's championship in the internationally renowned break dance event Outbreak, which is the first time that a Chinese male break dance player has won the championship in the world's top competition. The second place in Shanghai added more confidence to Qi Xiangyu's road to Paris.
On May 19, the women's street skateboarding final of the Olympic Qualifying Series in Shanghai was held, and China's Cui Chenxi ranked fifth with a total score of 247.44. Photo by China News Service reporter Tomita
In the final of the women's skateboarding street event, Cui Chenxi and Zeng Wenhui finished fifth and seventh respectively. Born in 2009, Cui Chenxi accidentally fell during training at this tournament, and she was visibly injured on her face when she appeared in the arena. China's youngest Asian Games champion said: "Injuries don't matter, it's all about the game, you just forget about it, don't think about it, just focus on the game." With a good attitude, she thinks she needs to strengthen her practice in line and movement.
In addition, 18-year-old Luo Zhilu also finished seventh in the final of the women's bouldering and difficulty climbing all-around events. According to the rules, the two Olympic qualifiers will produce 10 quota places for each of the men's and women's all-around events, which also means that Luo Zhilu has taken a solid step towards the ticket to the Paris Olympics.
The Paris Olympic Qualification Series will be held in Budapest, Hungary, from 20 to 23 June. The overall standings of the two tournaments will determine the quota place for the Paris Olympics, and the Chinese youngsters will continue to fight on the banks of the Danube River in Budapest. (ENDS)