Captain Yu Baiwei summed up the performance of the Chinese women's ice hockey team at the Beijing Winter Olympics
"with regrets, but without embarrassing the Chinese people"
At the Beijing Winter Olympics, the Chinese women's ice hockey team returned to the Olympic stage after 12 years.
Although the group stage 2 wins and 2 losses failed to advance to the top 8, the girls played energetically in these 4 games, and also let the outside world see the hope of Chinese women's ice hockey.
A few days ago, a reporter from the Beijing News and a small reporter from the Beijing News had an exclusive interview with Yu Baiwei, the captain of the Chinese women's ice hockey team.
Missing the top 8 results made Yu Baiwei a little regretful, but she admitted that the competition did not embarrass the Chinese.
Excited
I wanted to cry when I stepped on the Wukesong ice rink
At 12:10 noon on February 3, the Chinese women's ice hockey team faced the Czech team. This is the Chinese team's return to the Olympic stage after 12 years.
Standing behind the huge red curtain in the infield of Wukesong Sports Center, Yu Baiwei and his teammates were ready to play. At that moment, she had mixed feelings.
"It was very difficult to control my emotions at that time. I haven't felt this way in my life for a long time." The 33-year-old Yu Baiwei has experienced many battles. This is the first time she can't control her emotions before the competition.
The moment he stepped onto the Wukesong ice rink, Yu Baiwei said that he wanted to cry, "There are many pictures in front of me, I am trying to control myself, and the tears are rolling in my eyes." Maybe not many people can understand this moment for Bai Wei, what does it mean to Chinese women's ice hockey, "At that time, I felt how time can go so fast. 12 years is a number, but only we know the ups and downs in the middle. Standing on the field at that moment, I felt everything It's all worth it."
When Yu Baiwei first joined the team in 2005, Chinese women's ice hockey was at its peak. In the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics, she won a historic fourth place, and the World Championships has also been in the top 8 in the world's top group for a long time.
At the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, 21-year-old Yu Baiwei won the seventh place with the Chinese women's ice hockey team.
After that, the Chinese women's ice hockey fell into a low ebb, the World Championships were dropped consecutively, and they successively missed the two Winter Olympics in Sochi and Pingchang.
In 2013, the Chinese women's ice team changed blood, and Yu Baiwei chose to stay.
In fact, Yu Baiwei left for a short time when he was practicing ice hockey when he was a child, and went to practice cycling halfway.
But since becoming a member of the Chinese women's ice hockey team, Yu Baiwei has never left the team for 17 years.
"For me, there is always a girl ice complex." Yu Baiwei said that she always had such a breath in her heart, which was supported by the spirit of the old girl ice, and she always believed that the Chinese girl ice can be better.
calm down
Be consistent on and off the field
Among the Chinese sports delegation for the Beijing Winter Olympics, Yu Baiwei, born in 1988, is the oldest female player and one of only three players in this women's ice team to have participated in the Vancouver Winter Olympics.
Yu Baiwei said that he was fortunate to be in the team 12 years ago and is still in the team now, and even luckier that the Winter Olympics will be held in Beijing.
Compared with the fledgling 12 years ago, Yu Baiwei has already grown into the captain of the Chinese women's ice hockey team and has assumed more responsibilities on and off the field.
In the first few years of joining the team, Yu Baiwei said that as long as there were no mistakes in training and games, he would be very happy and satisfied every day. "It was easy to be satisfied at that time, just be yourself and not hold back your teammates."
Today, Yu Baiwei is not only the backbone of the Chinese women's ice hockey defense, but also the team's soulful player on and off the field.
There is a capital "C" printed on the left side of Yu Baiwei's jersey, which is the captain's logo, and also means that she has to take more responsibility, "If you want others to listen to you at critical times, or believe you in peacetime, You have to do your own words and deeds well, including training and competition, and you have to put in more effort than others.”
As the captain, Yu Baiwei said that her biggest responsibility is to make everyone unify their thoughts at critical moments and bring everyone together, "The most difficult thing about a group project is how to unify their thoughts, so that everyone is running towards one goal. Work hard for your goals, don’t just think about yourself, and always have the spirit of sacrificing yourself for the team.” Before each game, the female ice girls would put their hands together and shout to cheer, Yu Baiwei said that at that time she could The strength of unity can be seen in teammates and in their eyes.
As the captain, Yu Baiwei said that he must be absolutely stable both on and off the court, and he should not panic or be chaotic when anything happens. "When there is a problem on the field, I will first ask myself not to be chaotic, and then I will comfort others. People. Even if the scene is out of control, I have to control the rhythm first."
expect
China's women's ice win over Japan proves its strength
In the Beijing Winter Olympics, the Chinese team is in Group B with the Czech Republic, Denmark, Japan and Sweden.
According to the competition system, the top 3 teams from Group B and 5 teams from Group A will form the top 8 teams.
For the Chinese women's ice hockey team, who has been away from the Olympics for 12 years, every game is a tough battle.
In the first two games, the Chinese women's ice hockey team lost to the Czech Republic 1-3, and then defeated Denmark 3-1.
On February 6, the Chinese women's ice hockey team played against the Japanese team, which is also the only two Asian teams in the women's ice hockey team in the Beijing Winter Olympics.
In the Asian ice altar, the Chinese and Japanese teams are a pair of rivals.
To a certain extent, the Japanese team is like a ruler, measuring the position of Chinese women's ice in the Asian ice altar.
In Bai Wei's memory, every match with the Japanese team was a tough battle.
In 2008, in the qualifying match for the Vancouver Winter Olympics, the Chinese women's team defeated the Japanese team.
"At that time, everyone was holding a string." Yu Baiwei said that she knew very well what it would mean for the Chinese women's ice hockey team if she did not qualify for the Vancouver Winter Olympics. To do a miracle, to save ourselves, we finally did."
Since then, the Japanese women's ice has made rapid progress, surpassing the Chinese team in both ranking and strength.
In the past 14 years, China's women's ice hockey team has never defeated the Japanese team until the Beijing Winter Olympics.
On February 6, the Chinese women's ice hockey team narrowly beat the Japanese team on penalties after conceding a goal first. This victory once gave the Chinese women's ice hockey hope of advancing to the top 8.
It is a pity that the last game of the group lost Sweden 1-2, and the Chinese team missed the top 8 by 1 point.
"According to the results, it is acceptable, but it is actually a pity. After all, we did not make it to the top 8. Fortunately, we did a good job, and we did not lose face to the Chinese in the process." Yu Baiwei said that the other 4 teams in the same group Each team is ranked higher than the Chinese team, and they can win two games. They also beat the Japanese team, which is ranked the highest in the world. It also shows the strength of Chinese women’s ice hockey. It gradually gets better."
Although they missed the top 8, both Yu Baiwei and China Women's Ice have seen infinite possibilities in the future.
"We have seen where the gap is with other countries, and how big the gap is, and we will make targeted improvements in the future." Yu Baiwei said that these are all things that need to be prepared and adjusted for the next Olympic cycle. "This is a valuable opportunity. The experience is also a start for Chinese women's ice to become better."
Written by Sun Haiguang, chief reporter of the Beijing News
Beijing News reporter Wang Yitian