The Beijing Winter Games saw many young athletes shine on the biggest stage for winter sports. As the Chinese saying goes, newborn calves are not afraid of tigers（初生牛犊不怕虎）. Let's take a look at three Olympic medalists（奖牌获得者）who debuted（首次亮相）at Beijing 2022.
Su Yiming
At just 18, snowboarder（单板滑雪运动员）Su Yiming made history by winning China's first gold medal in men's snowboarding. Also, he won a silver medal in the slopestyle（坡面障碍技巧）. In the slopestyle event, he wowed the crowd with a tough trick（高难度动作）called triple cork 1800（三周空翻转体1800度）—five full rotations（旋转）in the air! He said it was crazy that he competed and stood on the podium（领奖台）with his childhood idols—Canadian snowboarders Max Parrot and Mark McMorris.
Inspired by his parents' love of skiing, Su started snowboarding when he was just 4 years old. At that time, his parents couldn't find a snowboard in China that would fit him. He showed talent in acting too. But he set his heart on snowboarding in 2015 after Beijing got the chance to host the 2022 Winter Games. "I was still in elementary school, yet I promised myself that I would try to make it to my home Olympics. To many people, it sounded like an unrealistic goal," he said. But now it has become a reality. "I want to say to all Chinese snowboarders that they should keep working hard and never give up, because dreams can come true," said Su after his win.
Gu Ailing
One of the most talked-about athletes at Beijing 2022 is two-time freeski（自由式滑雪）world champion Gu Ailing. Going into the Games, the 18-year-old set her sights high（目标远大）.
In the women's freeski big air event, she won gold thanks to a left double cork 1620 jump. To complete the jump, she made four and a half rotations in the air and landed backward（向后）. It was a difficult jump that she had never done before. Her mother told her to play it safe. "But I didn't listen to her and gave it a go, not trying to beat anyone but to elevate（提升）myself to the next level," said Gu.
Gu is known for her strong will and hard work. She encourages teenagers, especially girls, to challenge themselves through winter sports. "I love feeling nervous and then overcoming（克服）it, feeling that rush and that reward（回报）…that got me into skiing," Gu told The New York Times. Gu is also a part-time model and piano player. She will start studying at Stanford University this fall.
Li Wenlong
The Winter Olympics opened on Feb 4, the same day that speed skater Li Wenlong celebrated his 2lst birthday. Three days later, he won a silver medal in the men's 1,000m short track speed skating.
It was Li's first Winter Olympics. He skated behind his teammates as a team tactic（战术）. It means that he tried to help his teammates to win. Li did a good job. With his help, teammate Ren Ziwei won the gold medal. And Li himself crossed the line in second place. It was a big surprise! "I'm also very excited. This silver is just the beginning," said Li. "I'm going to keep going and hope to one day change the color of the medal to gold. "
Li started to skate at age 11. Quiet and hardworking, he is a good team player. "No matter if it's in training or competition, Li is always willing to support his teammates. He sees the team as more important than himself," said his coach（教练）, Liu Xiaoying.
