China's cold climb to winter sports peak
- Chris McMillan
- May 27
- 1 min read
China Daily
26th May 2026
China's cold climb to winter sports peak
Systematic support sends nation's disabled athletes to top of Paralympic table
By WANG XIAOYU
Two decades ago, when Chinese Paralympic athlete Fu Chunshan moved around on his crutches, the national flag on his skiing jacket would often peel at the edges or fall off entirely. With few resources and little funding, his team had no official outfitter and had to stick the flag on with adhesive tape.
"Before each competition, athletes from around the world would gather and gear up together in the preparation tent. We could not help looking on with envy as some European teams arrived with a full army of wax technicians, coaches, guides, team doctors and equipment managers," Fu said.
That memory, from the Turin 2006 Winter Paralympic Games in Italy, has stuck with him for 20 years.
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