Hockey hopeful is shooting for glory

Fu Rao never imagined that he would feature in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games in any capacity.

However, in mid-December, the 21-year-old hockey player was resting in his college dorm when he and a teammate were asked by the Beijing Ice Hockey Team, the side they represent, to be filmed for a segment of the Games' opening ceremony.

As soon as he saw the green screen, a large camera slider and a jib, the Beijing International Studies University student knew that the shoot was a professional affair and an important event.

Wearing his hockey gear, Fu was filmed at two sites, including Shougang Park, where the big air skiing event would take place.

Until the footage aired on Feb 4, he had no clue where or how it would be used during the ceremony, and he had been sworn to secrecy about his participation.

However, as his family watched the ceremony－discussing the artful use of the 24 solar terms of the Chinese Lunar Year used as the countdown－Fu recognized a scene and saw himself fleetingly in a section called "Major Heat", which represented the summer months.

Though he was only on screen for about 10 seconds of the 3 1/2-minute video, Fu was excited to tell his family that they had just seen him perform, and that he had taken part in the filming late last year.

In the footage, Fu and his teammate were seen playing hockey at night, surrounded by "lightning fireflies" that were created by intermittent flashes of light.

"As a college student, I feel really lucky to have been part of the opening ceremony. It was a unique experience, even though my gear and skates got a little burned during the shoot," Fu said, adding that his family was delighted to hear about his experience and celebrated his performance.

Accidental introduction

The young hockey player is determined to represent China at the international level, and his ultimate goal is to compete in the Winter Olympics in the future.

He started playing hockey at age 6, but only by chance－he had pneumonia, and a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine told his parents that cold air would aid his recovery.

That was Fu's introduction to ice-based games. He started with figure skating, the most popular winter sport in China, but he quickly switched to hockey after his parents heard that an arena had been built in Beijing, Fu's hometown.

"I remember that there were only about 10 hockey players in my age group across the country, but it was hard to maintain the training regime, and some of my peers quit. Usually, those who played well continued to train and stayed on the team," Fu said.

As he showed hockey talent at primary school, his parents supported his decision to continue training.

After Fu enrolled in middle school, his parents regularly took him for 90-minute training sessions at a club after class. With 90-minutes traveling each way, the round trip lasted twice as long as each of his training sessions.

In addition, he took part in high-level matches overseas during vacations. "China didn't have enough qualified players to organize an ice hockey league back then," he recalled.

Kunlun Red Star, the nation's professional men's hockey team, was founded in 2016. Based in Beijing, the team plays in the Kontinental Hockey League, an international professional competition that is reputed to be the second strongest in the world, after the NHL in North America.

Studies suspended

After Fu joined the Beijing team, which operates under the guidance of the Beijing Hockey Association, he practiced three hours a day, with the full support of his university.

"It was a challenge to balance my studies and training, so I have suspended my schooling for a year to focus on hockey," Fu said.

He added that he will take up his studies again early next year and he hopes to graduate with a good score.

Through hard work, he aims to improve his performance on the ice and achieve his goal of making the national team.

He said that he hasn't made long-term career plans as he can not predict the future of the sport in China. "But what I can do is improve and play well," he said.

Hockey has gained popularity since Beijing was announced as the host of the 2022 Winter Games.

Some children already have hockey classes in primary school, while people are generally paying great attention to the ongoing Olympic matches, even though the Chinese team has been eliminated from the competition.

"Though China still lost in games against top international teams, I think we have played our best hockey so far," Fu said.

Ranked 32nd in the world, the Chinese men's team lost 3-2 to Germany on Saturday, but the players made a breakthrough by scoring the country's first goals at the Olympics.

"Things will get better if we can maintain the momentum and improve the sport's infrastructure in the country, in addition to popularizing it," Fu said.