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Athletes to watch at Beijing 2022: Liu Jiayu
Editor's Note:
The Beijing Winter Olympics are set to kick off on February 4. Global Times has picked some of the biggest names to keep an eye on.
That was enough to stop a US sweep of the podium - which would have been a first since the event was introduced in 1998 at the Nagano Games - but not enough to beat the Korean-American teenager Chloe Kim, who with gold already won, dropped an almost perfect 98.25 on her third and final run.
Nonetheless, Liu described winning silver as a "great honor" at the time.
Her silver medal made history with the Hegang native becoming China's first snowboarding medalist of any color and sterling reward for her perseverance.
Since starting in the sport in 2003, Liu had shone on the international stage, winning six World Cup events and becoming a victor at the FIS Snowboarding World Championships in 2009. Pyeongchang, her third Winter Games, was her first Olympic podium after she just missed out in finishing fourth on her Winter Games debut in Vancouver, Canada back in 2010 as a teenager herself.
Now 29, Liu is an old hand on the snowboarding scene and she knows well her role on Team China but she has still has ambitions of going one better in Beijing than she did in South Korea.
She has been working at the UFC Performance Institute in Shanghai ahead of the Games and training in Europe but she is looking forward to competing on home snow in Heilongjiang.
"It's huge for China to host both summer and winter Olympics. It means a lot for winter sports in China that the games are going to be in Beijing," she said.
"It's going to promote winter sports in China, and not only snowboarding. Even with the impacts of the epidemic, I think there's a sense of excitement for the Olympics."
That excitement would reach fever pitch if she were to best Kim and the rest.
Liu, for her part, has said that she is only focused on beating herself and treats all competitions equally.
"For me personally, I know that some people may think there are different levels of competition. But as a snowboarder, all competitions are the same for me, be it national, international or the Olympics," she said.
"For me, I compete at the same level in every event. Of course, Olympics means something different for the country. But for me, I want to perform at the highest level. I want to do my best. That's what I do."
The Beijing Winter Olympics are set to kick off on February 4. Global Times has picked some of the biggest names to keep an eye on.
Photo: GT
Four years ago at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, Chinese snowboarder Liu Jiayu took silver in the women's half-pipe with a creditable 89.75 score for her best run.That was enough to stop a US sweep of the podium - which would have been a first since the event was introduced in 1998 at the Nagano Games - but not enough to beat the Korean-American teenager Chloe Kim, who with gold already won, dropped an almost perfect 98.25 on her third and final run.
Nonetheless, Liu described winning silver as a "great honor" at the time.
Her silver medal made history with the Hegang native becoming China's first snowboarding medalist of any color and sterling reward for her perseverance.
Since starting in the sport in 2003, Liu had shone on the international stage, winning six World Cup events and becoming a victor at the FIS Snowboarding World Championships in 2009. Pyeongchang, her third Winter Games, was her first Olympic podium after she just missed out in finishing fourth on her Winter Games debut in Vancouver, Canada back in 2010 as a teenager herself.
Now 29, Liu is an old hand on the snowboarding scene and she knows well her role on Team China but she has still has ambitions of going one better in Beijing than she did in South Korea.
Liu Jiayu competes in the Women's Halfpipe Qualification on Day 3 of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games on February 12, 2018. Photo: VCG
"As a veteran, I have the responsibility of passing on the tradition to younger teammates, and pushing to my limit for a good result on home snow," Liu said.She has been working at the UFC Performance Institute in Shanghai ahead of the Games and training in Europe but she is looking forward to competing on home snow in Heilongjiang.
"It's huge for China to host both summer and winter Olympics. It means a lot for winter sports in China that the games are going to be in Beijing," she said.
"It's going to promote winter sports in China, and not only snowboarding. Even with the impacts of the epidemic, I think there's a sense of excitement for the Olympics."
That excitement would reach fever pitch if she were to best Kim and the rest.
Liu, for her part, has said that she is only focused on beating herself and treats all competitions equally.
"For me personally, I know that some people may think there are different levels of competition. But as a snowboarder, all competitions are the same for me, be it national, international or the Olympics," she said.
"For me, I compete at the same level in every event. Of course, Olympics means something different for the country. But for me, I want to perform at the highest level. I want to do my best. That's what I do."
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