Ren Ziwei of China competes during the men's 1500m final at the ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating series in Debrecen, Hungary, Nov. 20, 2021. Photo: Xinhua

 
Team China pinned down two gold and two bronze medals during the final two days of the ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating competition that wrapped up on Sunday in Debrecen, Hungary. 

On Saturday, Chinese short track speed skater Ren Ziwei took first place in the Men’s 1500 meters event, while the following day the Chinese team consisting of Ren Ziwei alongside athletes Fan Kexin, Sun Long and Zhang Yuting beat out Canada, France, Hungary and South Korea to win gold in the 2000 meter mixed relay final. 

Due to a strategic change Ren joined the mixed relay squad, helping the team cross the finish line with a time of 39.386 seconds. Canada came in second, while France came in third.  

“As you can see, we had very good teamwork and we had an excellent race in the mixed relay,” Fan told media after the race. 

Besides his gold medal, Ren also scooped up a bronze in the 500 meter event, while Chinese female short track athletes Fan Kexin, Guo Yihan, Qu Chunyu and Zhang Yuting grabbed another bronze in the women’s 3000 meter relay event.

As a promising short track speeding skater representing China, Ren said his goal at the ISU competition was to qualify for the upcoming 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. 

“My target for the ISU tournament is to qualify for all sport categories at the Beijing Games. I want to win as many medals as possible,” Ren told media.

Team China’s good performance in Hungary inspired winter sports fans to want to see them win at the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. 

“It is a good sign as Ren Ziwei especially seems to be in a good state. We also have other potential skaters like Fan Kexin and Wu Dajing, also the team work appeared to be great. Obtaining our quota in medals in both the men’s and women’s events is achievable,” Ke Qian, a short track speed skating fan, told the Global Times. 

The ISU short track World Cup is a qualifying event for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. Moving on from Hungary, the Chinese team will compete until November 28 in the Netherlands, a very decisive final stop before the Beijing Games.