we now turn to our winter olympics series "like a champ," featuring some of china's winter sports athletes. today, we meet bai yu, an alpine skier who has represented china's national team. cgtn's omar khan spoke with the young athlete about the sport and china's ski industry.
there's a lot of sacrifice for athletes who make it to the top level in their game. and that's no different for 23-year-old chinese alpine skier, bai yu, who chose skiing over everything else.
bai yu alpine skier, china second men's national team "i was around eight years old, to be honest, i wasn't really into studying at that time. i'd get into fights with my classmates a lot. i didn't like it. one time the school held an athletics competition and i participated. i ended up winning it all. i slowly discovered that sports were something that i was better at, and was better suited for."
bai yu competes in arguably the fastest downhill sport on earth, the super giant slalom, also known as super-g. he's clocked in speeds well over 130 kilometers per hour.
it's precisely the velocity and thrill of the sport that's brought him to the mountain tops year after year.
bai yu alpine skier, china second men's national team "there's a sensation of stimulation with this sport. it's impossible to have full stability, you need every muscle in the body to help you control yourself. your core is also extremely important. i'm pretty tall but don't have that much explosive power, but my endurance is there. the tracks are quite long, sometimes more than two or three kilometers. so that's quite an incredible feeling."
even with the elation of flying down a slope and carving through powder, bai yu's alpine career hasn't come without struggle.
having never competed in the olympics, and with future prospects looking slim, frustration has set in.
bai yu alpine skier, china second men's national team "honestly, i was really angry, missing out on competing in the winter games. but there was a variety of reasons, including my injury and other reasons too. really, i was quite disappointed. i did all i could, i tried to show what i can do. i may have lost an opportunity, but hopefully there'll be better opportunities in the future."
but those challenges haven't phased the youngster one bit. in fact, he says it's inspired him to become even more involved with skiing and its development across china.
with spent time in europe, he's got a lot to offer to up and coming skiers across the country.
bai yu alpine skier, china second men's national team "the history of skiing is different in europe compared to china. the market here is developing slowly. in europe, their system is much larger, with kids starting to ski at a very young age. my plan is to build a training school, and i want it to be top class. i know it won't be easy, but i'm planning it step by step."
with beijing 2022 winter olympics just several weeks away, bai yu is confident in china's skiers, expressing hope for successful podium finishes.
