Chongqing- Although the Beijing Winter Olympics concluded, Chongqing people maintain high enthusiasm for the snow and ice sports.
From Chongqing Winter Sports Management Center, Chongqing will speed up the development of winter sports in the post-winter-Olympics era by popularizing relevant knowledge and selecting talents from adolescents.
Among them, local seeded young players, are inspired and stimulated by cross-country skier Wang Qiang, the first athlete selected for the Winter Olympics from Chongqing, said Ke Ping, Director of Chongqing Winter Sports Management Center.
National athletes from Chongqing
Two 18-year-old top-seeded players, Wang Shiqi and Zhang Yuting, entered the national snowboard training team in 2018, with the same training project as Su Yiming, the first Asian snowboard medalist in Winter Olympic history. Su won the gold in the men's Big Air at Beijing 2022.
"The enormous charm of snowboarding is that every time you start to jump, the feeling is incomparable to other sports," said Wang.
"Especially when you succeeded in your run with good action and performance, that kind of joy and happiness comes from the heart," she said. "Being engaged in skiing makes me feel the sense of excitement that I have never experienced before."
Wang Shiqi (right) and Zhang Yuting (left), two national snowboarders athletes from Chongqing, accepted the interview with iChongqing on February 16. (iChongqing/ Yue Xingchen)
Participating in the Olympic Games is every athlete's dream. Zhang works even harder after watching this years' competitions. This makes her feel more confident in snowboarding.
"I almost watch the games every day," she said. "We will do our best to get on a bigger stage and win glory for our country and our hometown."
Chongqing ice and snow sports
Responding to the national commitment to drive 300 million people to participate in winter sports, Chongqing, as a southern city, established the Winter Sports Management Center in 2020.
Ke said that they have selected and trained outstanding athletes like Wang Qiang in about a year and a half, the first athlete selected for the Winter Olympics from Chongqing who took part in four events in cross-country skiing at Beijing 2022.
Wang's appearance has influenced and led many young people to participate in ice and snow sports.
"We have a lot of children playing ice hockey and skiing now, expressing their desires to learn from this big brother and compete for Chongqing when they grow up," Ke said.
Ke Ping (right), Director of Chongqing Winter Sports Management Center with iChongqing reporter Chen Zhan (left). (iChongqing/ Yue Xingchen)
In the coming years, Chongqing will further speed up the development of ice and snow sports in the post-winter-Olympics era by popularizing winter sports and relevant knowledge to different organizations to experience winter sports nearby.
Additionally, Chongqing Winter Sports Management Center will select talents from a larger group of adolescents, ensuring the city can discover and cultivate more outstanding athletes for the national team.
"We hope to see more Chongqing players participating in the Winter Olympics in the future," said Ke.