Veterans answer the call

It's official: The college teacher and the choreographer are lacing up for the Olympics once again.

More than three years after what was believed to be their perfect career finale, China's Olympic champion figure skaters Han Cong and Sui Wenjing, having both indefinitely retired since winning the pairs gold at Beijing 2022, are heading to Milano-Cortina 2026 to embark on their third Olympic campaign, hoping their bold comeback against long odds will give their country's struggling program a needed boost.

Although still rusty in their routines, and apparently not quite in their best shape, the returning veterans have proved that they remain the go-to pair for Team China at the 2026 Games after strong chemistry and artistic expression saw them prevail to win the national championships title on Saturday at just their third official meet since deciding in June to return to action.

The national title, following their third-place finish at the ISU Figure Skating Grand Prix series' Cup of China in October, helped secure their place as China's sole representative in pairs in Milan after capping off the two-event domestic trials as the highest-ranked duo.

The younger duo of Zhang Jiaxuan and Huang Yihang, who earned China a national quota place in Milan at September's Olympic qualifying event, was outranked by their veteran counterparts in the trials after finishing fourth and third at the Cup of China and the national championships, respectively.

The proud opportunity to skate in Milan, however, wasn't quite part of either Han's, or Sui's, post-Beijing 2022 plans, with both of them having already carved out different career paths after realizing their biggest goal on their home ice.

The 33-year-old Han has become a technical delegate with the International Skating Union and, since 2023, been a PE teacher at Tsinghua University, giving up the ascetic lifestyle that he'd embraced for more than a decade to stay fit and strong.

Sui, who is three years Han's junior, also enjoys a diverse life, studying choreography at Beijing Dance Academy, completing her post-graduate degree at Beijing Sport University and co-directing at art shows, such as the 2025 Asian Winter Games' opening ceremony in February.

With the country's stagnant figure skating program struggling to stay competitive entering the current Olympic cycle, the two-time world champions responded to the call of duty without hesitation.

"It's a huge challenge for sure, but we've been conditioned to always defy the odds over the past eight years across the two Olympics in which we've competed," Sui said after pairing with Han to score 151.60 points in Saturday's free skate, taking the national title with a combined total of 237.57 following Friday's short program.

"We felt it was our responsibility to step up when the national program hit a bump at a difficult time. By coming back to represent our country at the Olympics again, we hope to set an example for the younger generation."

The way back was, of course, full of sweat and pain, with doubts also wearing them down with each training setback.

Han has had to lose 10 kilograms in weight, getting on a diet while nursing a right arm injury that occurred when attempting a lift in his first on-ice training session in June.

Sui, who's already had surgery on both ankles and had to learn to walk again prior to Pyeongchang 2018, suffered a bone contusion in her right foot at their second event — the Grand Prix Japan leg in November — and had to take painkillers before Saturday's free skate to numb her ankle pain to be able to land throw jumps.

"Physically, we've come a long way and have improved a lot over a month of solid training since the last Grand Prix event," said Han, who stands at 1.7 meters tall, way below the average height of a male partner in pairs at the international level.

"We didn't bring out the best form that we've seen in training at this meet, we are still lacking some confidence on the ice, and we just roughly completed the choreography of our short and free programs.

"That means we still have plenty room for improvement and a lot of details to refine, which actually makes us more confident for the quality of the program we will ultimately perform in Milan."

Sui and Han made up for their conditioning issues and flaws in execution, exposed by a few shaky landings by Sui in her individual jump and a throw off Han, with their artistic expression, a particular strength of the duo that has helped them collect five world championships medals, including two gold, since 2015.

The smoothness of their step sequence and technical detail of their lifts and jumps will be fine-tuned after brainstorming sessions and online reviews with their long-term Canadian choreographer Lori Nichol, through many "face-time calls", said Sui.

Earlier on Saturday, the veteran ice dance duo Wang Shiyue and Liu Xinyu scored 120.65 points to top the field and finish with a total of 202.06, delivering a convincing victory and securing their ticket to the Milan Olympics.

Teen prodigy Zhang Ruiyang will represent China in women's singles after placing second at the national meet, while two-time Olympian skater Jin Boyang booked a trip to his third Olympics in men's singles by winning the national title on Sunday.

sunxiaochen@chinadaily.com.cn