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Everyone is watching the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games! Hear our students talk about what they like about the Olympics, what inspires them, their favourite athlete, and their fun experiences trying out some winter sports for themselves!
Antonia Dreher Year 8
In the Winter Olympic games, many events are linked to skiing. For example, ski-cross, ski-halfpipe and ski-slopestyle. Personally, I like skiing a lot, even though I only went skiing once. My experience was during the winter holidays on 29th of December. When we arrived, we had to rent the equipment that we needed to ski. At the beginning I had no idea how to ski. So, we went up a hill.
We stood on a flat escalator to get up. At the top of the hill, I waited a bit, until I was finally brave enough to ski down. My dad told me that I should keep my skis in a V-shape so that I don’t go too fast.
I kept on practicing on the small hill until I was finally confident enough to go on a bigger one. At the top we could then decide if we wanted to go for the easier or harder trails. My sister and I chose the easier one, my dad came with us, while my brother went on a harder one. I continued to improve and then I also went on the harder ones! Overall, it was a very great experience, and I would do it again.
Florentina Kicker Year 8
My favorite Olympic sport has got to be skiing, and as a proud Austrian, I started skiing at the age of 3. Until now, I always loved this sport, as it is a great way to enjoy the time outside with family in a time where it is freezing cold, and many people would rather sit at home, watching TV or generally spending time indoors. Since that age, I would attend skiing lessons every Christmas, go skiing with my uncle and grandpa (who used to be skiing teachers), and go skiing here in China with my parents and siblings.
Last year in February, whilst I was skiing here in Beijing though, I broke my leg. This was definitely a setback for me, as you can never get rid of the thought haunting you in the back of your head, that breaking a bone or generally injuring yourself doing something you love is sadly possible.
Talking about injuries, my favorite Olympics athlete is probably Matthias Mayer (the downhill skier), as he overcame many serious injuries during his time as a professional athlete, and instead of these injuries setting him back, he managed to win a Gold and a Bronze for Austria already in this year's Winter Olympics!
Gabriella Wilson Year 8
To be honest, I haven’t ever tried any Winter Olympic events apart from going down slopes in a sleigh or doing snow tubing when I was younger, I haven’t done any other snow related activities, not even ice-skating. I would always dream of finally being able to do something fun and out of my comfort zone, but just never got the chance to do it. So, I will be talking about what I most likely would feel if I ever got the chance to do any of these Winter Olympic sports or anything else Winter Olympic related.
Firstly, I would like to talk about how excited I would always get when it comes to the Olympics, mainly because it happens rarely, once every four years. It was such a pleasure to finally be able to watch the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic opening ceremony this year, and as my country came on, I felt proud and even emotional at times. Every year, the ceremonies just get better, and what blows my mind away is the fact that the torch relay came all the way from Greece, where the first Olympic games were held. I thought the advanced technology used in this year’s Winter Olympic ceremony was incredible, and to this day, I just still can’t figure out how some of the technology works!
I haven’t particularly watched much of the Winter Olympics other than this year’s, and I don’t remember much of the amazing moments that happened in the Olympic history, but the one thing that I will always remember was the great victory of Eileen Feng Gu from this year’s women's freestyle skiing big air event at the Olympics, which I’m sure everyone already knows about. What strikes me was her fearless personality. Like everybody, she would definitely be afraid and depressed at times, but that never stopped her from continuing, taking risks and making mistakes.
Eileen said, “First of all, I'm an 18-year-old girl. I'm a kid. I haven't even gone to college yet. I'm a pretty normal person … If people don't have a good heart, they won't believe me, because they can't empathize with people who do have a good heart. And so, in that sense, I feel as though it's a lot easier to block out the hate now. And also, they’re never going to know what it feels like to win an Olympic gold medal."
To me, she is like a role model, and I feel that in this quote of hers, she really shows her personality and is not afraid to be herself. The look on her face as she saw her score and realised she was guaranteed to win, was just effortless. It showed all the work she had done paid off and I feel it really taught me that you can do anything in life, as long as you work hard for it, and not be afraid of failure. So, in my opinion, with all the fame she is building up, she really is like a heroine to me.
One day, I will definitely go and try a winter Olympic event just for some fun, and I’m sure that it will be a great opportunity to try something different and unpredictable… Currently, I’m not all that interested in snow-related sports, as I am in things like dancing. But when I do try it, I’m positive I will see it differently and love it. One event I am passionate to try is ice skating or skiing to begin my new journey of adventures.
Leandro Baehr Year 7
One day I want to attempt in the Summer and Winter Olympics. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and experience. All my dreams would come true in becoming an Olympics athlete.
I have tried a lot of swimming events in school that also occur in the Olympics. I have also done a lot of running events that also occur in the Summer Olympics. When winter arrives, my family and I go outside to different places for skiing or snowboarding. They both are one of my favourite hobbies but sadly you can only do them in winter.
I am most passionate about winning a gold medal in the Olympics football and swimming events. I hope that my dream will come true.
Mina Zhang Year 10
I like most of the sports in the Winter Olympics and have tried some out before. I started skiing when I was 7 and continued for four years. The very first time I ever skied was in Norway, I don’t remember the details but I do know that from that day on, I loved the sport.
I would go skiing very year, usually my family and I went skiing in Austria or Switzerland. However when I got older I had less time and then the pandemic started where we had to stay home for one to two years.
Last year I went to a winter camp where you could ski and snowboard. Because I wanted to try something new, something I’ve never did before, I ended up snowboarding. It was really fun too and somehow easier to learn than skiing, maybe because I am older now..?
I didn’t ever have a hero/heroine until now. The Chinese teen Su Yiming got silver medal in the snowboarding slopestyle finale. He performed an astounding triple cork 1800 which hasn’t ever appeared in the Olympic Games. Another is Gu Ailing (Eileen). She’s an American Chinese who won 7 gold and 2 silver medals within 7 months. She is my heroine not only because of her skiing skills, but also how her passion for skiing didn’t affect her studies – she got a SAT score of 1580 out of 1600!
Another sport that I did was when I was around 10 or 11 years old, I learned ice skating, even though I only continued it for 1 year before moving to Beijing. It was very tiring and it hurt a lot when I fell but I enjoyed it. Because I already had some experience with roller skating which is really similar to ice skating, I had an advantage over the other girls who started off completely new.
I like all these sports and want to continue doing them!!
By Runmeng Chen (Renee) Year 8
I think my most loved Winter Olympics game is snow skiing. I went snow skiing on the weekends and it was fantastic! I went on top of the tallest mountain peak and experienced the stimulation of sliding from the tallest mountain.
Who’s my Winter Olympics heroine?
Eileen Gu is the person I look up to. She is mixed Chinese and American. She played well in snow skiing and will study at Standford University. She is also an Olympics Champion. I went snow skiing with my friends and Eileen is the person who motivated me the most to go snow skiing, to love snow skiing, and to love new things. I look forward to seeing Eileen win more Olympics medals and I also want to improve my skiing skills.
Yasmin Chesaru Year 7
During these past few weeks, I have been keeping up with the 2022 Winter Olympics which are currently being held right here in Beijing. Many countries have travelled far to come and compete.
I enjoy watching the Winter Olympics as I can relate to the sports more especially Skiing and Skating. I have been doing both since I was around 7, so when I see talented people that are doing what they love, it inspires me to pursue what I love and enjoy.
So far, my favourite moment is when the American representative for skiing, Kai Owens, qualifies. Although many did qualify into the next round, this is the most special one for me because she is originally from China but was abandoned by her parents and eventually adopted by American parents. I find this inspiring because this is the place that made a huge change when she was an infant and it may do the same when she is now a young adult.
I do not have a particular role model for the Olympics, but I congratulate every participant on their courage and determination. I wish everyone luck and thank you for reading.
Elaine van der Chijs
My Winter Olympic heroine is Eileen Gu. She is a huge inspiration to many fans all across the globe, not just because she is an Olympic champion/Gold Medalist, but she is inspirational in a wider concept, especially for young girls. Eileen Gu is very determined and challenges herself under pressure. Last week, in the finals for her last jump she tried a combination that she has never done before on skis, and she did it amazingly even though she would have gotten a Bronze Medal anyways if she fails the jump, she wanted to give it her all which I think is very motivational and is a quality to look up to.
Another reason why she is a heroine to me personally is because I feel I can sort of connect with her. Being a half Chinese and half Dutch (but having spent most of my life in Canada) I also feel quite international. She decided to represent team China in the Olympics because she wanted to promote Winter Sports (especially skiing) in China. She gave up her American Citizenship to convert to being a Chinese just because she simply wanted to inspire is something that I look up to. I also think that the way she answers questions is very noble, as she knows what she wants but the wording she uses is perfect. People from both sides (America and China) always want to divide her or push her into one side but all she wants to do is unite, and in a recent interview when asked how hard it is to keep both sides happy, she replied that “I am not trying to keep everyone happy, for me I am doing my best and trying to use my voice for as much positive change as I can for the voices that will listen to me.” You can see that her morals and interviews are always extremely interesting and positive.
Lastly, though she is only 18, she has accomplished so much. She has won so many world championships or competitions since she was 12, I believe (or maybe even earlier) which is extremely admirable. But not only in terms of skiing, she is a very well-rounded person in general and an amazing asset to this world. Eileen Gu got a nearly perfect (1580) score on her SAT, even though she has had to miss a lot of school due to her ski training and her only time that she can do homework is when she is in the car. She is going to go to Stanford University next year! In her spare time, she is a model. She has modeled for companies such as Vogue, Louis Vuitton, and so much more – her schedule is packed. As well as this, she is a promoter for femininity. She has done many speeches and interviews about this, and even wrote an article for the New York Times: this is another asset that makes young girls look up to her as she is trying to prove everyone’s worth. You can see from all she does that she manages her time extremely well, which is a quality that I am currently trying to work on because of her inspiration.
Though I may not become a professional skier (or sportswoman in general, that is), she has so many admirable and amazing qualities that I am inspired by. I think she is a wonderful asset to the world as she is definitely having a positive impact. This is why she is my heroine.
Year 9 and Year 11 students have begun the options process of selecting their IGCSE and IB Diploma courses for next school year.