While preparing for the Beijing Winter Olympics, China has made every effort to learn from the world’s top winter sports countries.
For all of the events of the Winter Olympics, China has established deep collaborations with experts from winter sports powers such as Norway, Austria, Switzerland and Finland, including the recruitment of high-level foreign coaches and overseas training for athletes.
At present, nearly 100 foreign winter sports coaches are working in China, including some of the best in the business. Among them is Norwegian Ole Einar Bjørndalen, known as the “King of Biathlon,” who has participated in six Winter Olympics and won eight gold medals. His wife, Belarusian biathlon star Darya Domracheva is another famous name in Winter Olympics circles, with three gold medals from Sochi in 2014, and is now coaching the Chinese women’s biathlon team.
Mika Kojonkoski, chief coach of the Chinese ski jumping team, is also a legendary coach. During his 20-year career, he has coached the national ski jumping teams of Austria, Finland and Norway, and the athletes he trained have won 34 Olympic and world championship medals. He is also the current chairman of the ski jumping committee of the International Ski Federation.
Although China is already strong in ice sports, Kim Sun-tae, former coach of the South Korean national short track speed skating team, was added to the list of head coaches of China’s national team, which is in line with its mission of “being stronger.” Under the guidance of Kim, South Korea’s national team made a great comeback at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, after only having claimed one medal in Sochi. China’s all-Korean coaching team also includes technical coach Ahn Hyun-soo, who won consecutive Olympic gold medals in Sochi and Pyeongchang, whose world-class skating skills will help the Chinese athletes achieve rapid progress.
In addition, the Chinese Figure Skating Association officially signed a cooperation agreement with the Canadian coaching team headed by Brian Orser in 2018. Also on the team are Tracy Wilson, a technique coach and choreographer, David Wilson, a choreography expert with unique means to strengthen a skater’s expression and Lee Barkwell, who specializes in teaching difficult movements and jumps.
While China is benefiting from the expertise of foreign coaches, there are also a few Chinese coaches helping other teams, mostly in short track speed skating.
The list of Chinese short track speed skating coaches who have worked overseas includes Zhang Jing, who has coached the Hungarian men’s team; Li Yan, who has trained the Slovak, American and Austrian national teams; An Yulong, who guided the Russian team and laid the foundation for the rise of Russia’s short track skaters; Li Jiajun, who coached Kazakhstan and helped Kazakh athletes do quite well in Pyeongchang; and Zhang Yuanyuan, who helped the Australian team grab a Winter Olympic gold medal once.
Yang Wang is a sports commentator.
The views and opinions expressed in this opinion section are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the editorial positions of Caixin Media.
If you would like to write an opinion for Caixin Global, please send your ideas or finished opinions to our email: opinionen@caixin.com
Contact editor Michael Bellart (michaelbellart@caixin.com)
Get our weekly free Must-Read newsletter.
