(Fourteenth Winter) Fourteenth Winter Observation: The "changes" and "unchanges" of veterans in the Winter Games

　　China News Service, Hulunbuir, February 24th: Title: Fourteenth Winter Observation: The "changes" and "unchanges" of veterans in the Winter Games

　　Author Guoxuan

　　After losing the first two games, on the 23rd, in the fourth round of the women's round-robin curling competition of the 14th National Winter Games (referred to as "14th Winter"), Wang Bingyu withstood the pressure and passed the ball in the last shot. Successfully led the Sichuan team to a narrow victory over the Yunnan team 5:4, achieving their first victory since the start of the season.

　　Although they lost to the Gansu team 8:9 in the fifth round that night, the former captain of the Chinese women's curling team, who returned to the competition after five years, said that the opportunity to compete with her old teammates was very rare and the first priority of the "14th Winter" The goal is to enjoy the game.

　　In 2009, the "Four Golden Flowers" Wang Bingyu, Zhou Yan, Yue Qingshuang and Liu Yin won the gold medal at the World Championships for the first time, and won bronze at the Vancouver Winter Olympics the following year.

In recent years, the four of them have gradually faded out of the game and taken up positions such as coaching and university teachers.

Before the "14th Winter", Zhou Yan, who was teaching the Sichuan curling team, sent an invitation to the three sisters to form a team. Wang Bingyu and Yue Qingshuang happily agreed, but Liu Yin was unable to attend the appointment due to health and work conditions.

　　In this way, 40-year-old Wang Bingyu embarked on her fifth Winter Games trip, joining hands with 42-year-old Zhou Yan and 39-year-old Yue Qingshuang to compete in the "14th Winter" with two young teammates born after 1995.

Since they each have their own work, the three of them don't have much time to practice together, but when they step onto the field, the tacit understanding of fighting side by side in the past is still there.

Zhou Yan said: "One ball Bingyu shouted loudly, it felt like it was back to the past, very excited."

On February 23, the fourth round of the women's round-robin competition in the curling open group of the 14th National Winter Games was held in Hulunbuir, Inner Mongolia. The picture shows Wang Bingyu during the competition.

Photo by China News Service reporter Cui Nan

　　"Inheritance" was a frequently used word when the three were interviewed.

Yue Qingshuang said that the current mentality is to enjoy the game and pass on the spirit.

Zhou Yan believes that the veterans’ persistence, dedication, love and spirit of not giving up and fighting tenaciously need to be passed on to the young players.

Wang Bingyu also said that the first generation of curling athletes have served as coaches one after another, sharing their experiences and understanding of curling with young people to help them make up for their lack of competition experience.

"I hope that young players can see that they can still stand on the court and compete at the age of 40."

　　"Inheritance" is also the expectation of veteran Badxin, who helped the Heilongjiang team win the curling mixed doubles gold medal a few days ago.

After retiring in 2019, he first returned to the Harbin team as a coach, and then entered the Harbin Sports Institute to become a teacher.

Badxin hopes to use this gold medal to promote curling.

“I want to pass on curling knowledge to students and let more people fall in love with this sport.”

　　In addition to regaining their identities as athletes, there are also veterans appearing in new roles in the "Fourteenth Winter" competition.

On the 21st, after the Guangdong team Guo Rui/Zhang Yiwen finished their pair skating short program competition in the figure skating team competition, a familiar figure appeared among the people waiting for their scores on the sidelines - Beijing Winter Olympics figure skating pairs champion Sui Wenjing .

　　After the Beijing Winter Olympics, after studying abroad and writing books, Sui Wenjing also began to pursue the "choreographer's dream" that originated in 2015.

Influenced by Canadian choreographer Lowry, Sui Wenjing had planned to become a choreographer after retiring.

Over the past year or so, many of the programs she choreographed have appeared in competitions.

"It is particularly meaningful to help athletes move forward. I have received a lot of help from others in the past. When I come off the field, I also want to help more children and give them more help."

　　Han Cong, another member of the "Onion Bucket Group", returned to the Winter Games as a referee.

In September 2022, Han Cong was appointed as an athlete member of the International Skating Union's Single and Double Skating Technical Committee, and later passed the national-level referee qualification certification.

In addition, he also became a physical education teacher at Tsinghua University, sharing the story of his athletic career with students.

"Things remain unchanged, and I am still fighting for the cause I love. As an athlete, I know what the team staff have done for us; after becoming a teacher, I hope to give what sports have given me, and then give it to my classmates."

　　Athletes, coaches, teachers, referees... Although their identities have changed, what remains unchanged is the veteran's love for ice and snow sports and the inheritance of the Winter Olympics spirit.

(over)