Going all out for gold

With the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics just a year away, Chinese athletes have vowed to spare no effort over the next 12 months as they target a gold rush at their home Games.

Locked in strict quarantine and with no international events to compete in, China's Olympic hopefuls are refusing to let whatever obstacles the COVID-19 pandemic throws at them as they push their limits on the ice and snow.

Thanks to the successful control of the epidemic at home, Chinese teams continue to finesse their preparations at multiple national training bases scattered across Beijing, surrounding province Hebei and northeastern province Jilin.

With some international competitions resuming and the Olympic qualifying system set to restart, China's winter sports governing body is working on plans supported by the country's foreign affairs and disease control authorities to send teams abroad to compete if necessary.

"We haven't been able to compete at World Cup events for a year, so have no clue about how our foreign opponents are doing and how much progress they've made," said short-track speed skater Ren Ziwei, a men's 1,500m winner at a World Cup meet in Germany last February.

"The only thing I can control and focus on is to make every day count in the final year to improve my weaknesses, such as my skills riding the track curves, to put myself within a shot of gold," said the 23-year-old Heilongjiang native.

Led by medal prospects like Ren and defending men's 500m Olympic champion Wu Dajing, China's skaters shoulder the bulk of the host's medal ambitions in 2022, having contributed 12 out of the country's 13 golds won at Winter Olympics through the decades.

China's figure skaters are also carrying a heavy weight of expectation.

The squad, which has been training behind closed doors in Beijing's Shougang Industrial Park, is preparing for a trip to Sweden to compete at the 2021 world championships, which will take place in an empty Stockholm arena from March 22-28.

"The next year is going to be tough for sure but I will try to enjoy life and training as usual to hopefully put on our best show at the home Olympics," said Sui Wenjing, a two-time world champion in pairs with partner Han Cong.

In freestyle skiing, China's Gu Ailing has emerged as a favorite for gold after a stunning double triumph in halfpipe and slopestyle at last month's Winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado.

The 17-year-old US-born prodigy has made no secret of her desire to top the podium at Beijing 2022 and appears well equipped to cope with the spotlight. "I'm a very competitive person and it's not over until it's over," Gu said after her wins in Aspen.

As a rookie in most snow-based events, China has hired numerous foreign coaches－including Norway's eight-time Olympic champion Ole Einar Bjorndalen in biathlon and Russia's 2010 Olympic champ Nikita Kriukov in cross-country skiing－to help speed up its development in these disciplines.

The Winter Sports Administrative Center has set a target for Chinese athletes to qualify in all 109 Beijing 2022 medal events－up from 55 at the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang－and to eclipse the country's best gold-medal haul of five (2010 Vancouver).

"Home advantage and help from international coaches should make us confident and daring to compete against the world's best," Ni Huizhong, director of the center, said in his pep talk during a mobilization meeting last month.

"Yet we still need to stay humble, calm and dedicated in our mission, which is to try to catch up and surpass the best in as many events as we can."

Sound Bites

Thomas Bach, International Olympic Committee president

"There is the one year to go on February 4. We can say, even one year before, that all the (competition) venues are ready, the technical preparations are excellent and China, as you know, is taking very strict measures and restrictions right now (against COVID-19), also with regard to participation in the test events."

Gu Ailing, Chinese freestyle skier

"China has an ambition to get 300 million people on ice and snow before the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, and so there's this burgeoning and explosive opportunity to introduce the sport and passion for sport to so many people... For me personally, my goal is to win Olympic gold. That to me is just representative of excellence in sport; it's the top achievement undisputedly."

Wang Bingyu, retired curling world champion who now works as Beijing 2022's curling competition director

"I have participated in three Olympic Games and I know how hard it is for the athletes. So in the buildup to Beijing 2022, I want to work hard with my colleagues to ensure all athletes from across the globe enjoy the best competition environment. I hope they will be hugely impressed by Beijing 2022."

Jin Boyang, Chinese figure skater

"The 2022 Beijing Olympics will be staged during that year's Spring Festival. So I hope all our Chinese winter sports athletes can produce their best performances for the Chinese people and win honor for our country. We also hope such energy can encourage more people to participate in winter sports."

Li Xin, Chinese cross-country skier

"I am eager to stand on the podium at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games and to see our national flag raised. Before the start of the Games, I have to keep sharp and maintain a good attitude to try hard in training each day."