Who Will Light the Cauldron at the Winter Olympics?


This is one of the hot topics at the start of any Game and one of the most closely guarded secrets: Who will light the Olympic cauldron in the stadium during the opening ceremony?

A New York Times pretty good recording We’ve been guessing who will take the honor lately, so let’s give it another try.

Typically, Olympic cauldron lighters are legendary athletes from the host country. For example, who else will light the cauldron at the 2010 Vancouver Games? Wayne Gretzky? Four years ago, the South Korean skater Yuna Kim Selected for the Pyeongchang Games.

It is also possible to choose an active athlete: Tennis star Naomi Osaka for example, it was selected at the Tokyo Games last year.

China has a relatively short history of success. Winter Games, which simplifies our search a bit. The country won its first winter medals only in 1992 and its first gold in 2002.

Considering the background, here are some of the leading candidates:

7. Chen Lu. Well remembered in China and abroad for his fine performances in figure skating in 1994 and 1998, Chen’s downside is that he only won two bronze medals and never won any gold.

6. Han Xiaopeng. The 2006 gold medal in ski aerials is China’s only gold in a snow sport.

5. Eileen Gu. China is less likely to be an active athlete this year, as there is no marquee artist at these Games. Gu, who could win a gold medal in freestyle skiing, may seem like the best candidate, but he was born and raised in the United States. Although he has chosen to represent China internationally, his background can be counted against him if officials are looking for domestic athletes.

4. Wang Meng. The sprinter has four gold medals and six total medals, both records for China. This seems to put it at the top of the list. But his choice is not a dunk: sacked as manager He was part of the Chinese speed skating team in 2020 after less than a year of training, which could have made him an odd choice. He was kicked out of the skate team in 2011. after a physical fight Such checkered background with team officials, image-conscious selectors can hurt it.

3. Yang Yang (S). Ten of China’s 13 Winter Olympics golds came in sprint speed skating. Yang won five medals but did not get any gold. An unusual name was chosen because at that time there was another top speed skater named Yang Yang. Which brings us…

2nd Yang Yang (A). With two golds and a total of five medals, Yang Yang (A) has even better references than his namesake for lighting the cauldron. But despite China’s great short-term success over the years, we’re going in a different direction for our final pick.

one. Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo. The doubles champions of 2010 are China’s only gold medalist in figure skating, perhaps the most popular sport at the Games worldwide. A husband-wife team would have the added advantage of having a man and a woman light the cauldron together.



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