by Sportswriters Sun Zhe, Huang Haoran
CHONGLI, CHINA, JANUARY 28 (Xinhua) – When China unveils a 12-member cross-country team for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics on Thursday, eyes on whether China can make a breakthrough in such a long term are a weakness.
Dinigeer Yilamujiang, 21, is the most notable name in the women’s team as she finished second in the preliminary part of a sprint series in Beijing, the first Chinese cross-country ski medalist at any event at FIS level.
“Here is a young team of athletes and some of them are coming to the Games for the first time, but we are confident and driven to the best results we can at home,” said Zhang Bei, head of Team China.
China focuses on the women’s relay 4×5 km, which has a chance to make a historic breakthrough and stand on the podium for the first time, but they have to face tough competition from Norway, Sweden and Russia.
As one of the earliest sports of the Winter Games, cross-country skiing includes 12 events and has 36 medals to offer. The program starts on February 5.
The classic sport is dominated by Norway in Olympic history, which earned 121 medals in total, 41 more than its nearest rival Sweden.
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo will probably shine again in the men’s competition, which took three gold medals in the men’s sprint, the men’s 4×10 km relay and the men’s team sprint at PyeongChang 2018, waiting to repeat the highlight trick in Beijing.
Norwegian Terese Johaug was absent at PyeongChang 2018 due to doping suspension, and she is back to her best and meets Sweden’s Jonna Sundling in the sprint and team programs.
Covid-19 hit Norway when the two-time Olympic winner Simen Hegstad Kruger tested positive, followed by top-ranked Heidi Weng and her teammate Anne Kjersti Kalva in the women’s team on Wednesday.
It was unclear whether the big medal challengers will be able to get into China, the team says.
Sweden has released its squad for the competition, led by Calle Halfvarsson and Olympic champion Charlotte Kalla.
The three-time Olympic winner Kalla, who took home the title in skiathlon 7.5 km + 7.5 km for women at PyeongChang 2018, is still the most powerful competitor for the very first gold medal during the entire games.
Source: sn.dk