On track to becoming a winter sports power

There is little doubt that Chinese enthusiasm for winter sports is driven by stars of the Beijing 2022 Games like Gu Ailing and Su Yiming.

In Xinjiang's Shihezi city, six-year-old Nie Rongchen has been training on snowy slopes for at least 10 hours per week this winter. "My dream is to be selected into the national team just like my idol, Olympic champion Su Yiming," he said.

2022 witnessed a string of breakthroughs for Chinese winter sports, as the host nation clinched nine gold, four silver and two bronze medals at the Winter Olympics, and topped the medal tally with 18 gold, 20 silver and 23 bronze medals at the Winter Paralympics.

With three years to go before the 2026 Winter Olympics, Chinese athletes including future stars in the making hope to follow in the footsteps of gold medalists Gu and Su.

In November last year, speed skater Ning Zhongyan claimed his first World Cup victory of the 2022-2023 season, winning the men's 1,000m in Heerenveen, the Netherlands.

Despite failing to make the podium at Beijing 2022, Ning has set his eyes on the 2026 Games in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. "Give me some time, luck is not far away from me," he said.

China showed its depth of talent in curling as well, with the country's women curlers winning gold at the 31st Winter World University Games in Lake Placid, the United States.

"The Winter Universiade triumph was really a big boost to my confidence in the lead up to the 2026 Winter Games," said China's captain Han Yu. "I've become more mature."