People’s Republic of China
Nations Cup Ranking: 22nd (20 pts)
Men: 22nd (8 pts)
Women: 21st (12 pts)
People’s Republic of China
Nations Cup Ranking: 22nd (20 pts)
Men: 22nd (8 pts)
Women: 21st (12 pts)
2010/2011 World Cup Team (Best estimate)
Men
Qinghai Sun
Xu Wenlong
Women
Li Hongxue
Dandan Man
What you may have missed last season:
The Tour de Ski China. In the 2010 edition, the Chinese took city sprints to an entirely new level, opting to run an event inside the famous ‘Birds Nest’ stadium built for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. And the Tour de Ski China isn’t just for the Chinese – Bjorn Lind, Hilde G. Petersen and Fabio Pasini have all
participated at one time or another.
Also, the Chinese did a fantastic job at the Olympics, or more specifically, one Qinghai Sun did. He qualified in 12th place at the Olympic sprint, shocking a lot of people looking at qualifying results. Not to poke a sore wound, but Andy Newell and Torin Koos out and Qinghai Sun in? What is going on?!
As for the women, Li Hingxue gets some props for picking up her 12 World Cup points at a 10 k Classic event in Otepaa, Estonia, where she actually had to beat a few people (29, exactly).
What You Should Know For This Season
The Chinese National Ski Team is only four years old – a remarkably short period of time to have have achieved ANY success on the World Cup, limited though it is. However, the team has already hit a major speed bump before the season has even begun, as head coach Per Erik Ronnestrand, coach of the Chinese National Team and former head coach of the Swedish National Team, has left his position with the organization. For a country that is better known for producing suspect female gymnastics than cross-country skiers, the loss of an experienced coach is pretty steep.
However, you can never count the Chinese out – Three Gorges Dam, anybody? After all, they do have their own Tour de Ski and Vasaloppet.
Who You Should Watch
Quinghai Sun. The 12th place in the Olympic sprint qualifier and 21st overall shows that the 22 year old has the speed. If he gets the chance to start more than the two World Cups that he did last season, he could become a consistent contender in the sprint heats.
