Ones to watch: 5 Asian athletes we think will make a splash in 2022
- From skiing sensation Eileen Gu, to China’s first Formula 1 driver Zhou Guanyu, here are some sportsmen and women to watch out for next year
Eileen Gu – Freestyle skier
Chinese freeskier Eileen Gu Ailing is touted as a Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics “triple threat” gold medal hope for a reason. Known as “Ice Princess” in Chinese media, the 18-year-old has been sweeping countless gold medals and smashing national milestones ever since opting to represent China over her birthplace of the US in 2019.
Gu bagged two 2020 Youth Olympic golds and one silver last year, before becoming the first Chinese freeskier to win multiple gold medals at the 2021 FIS Snowboard and Freeski world championships.
She won two more golds and a bronze at the renowned X-Games, where she was the first Chinese entrant to win gold in the event’s history, and only rookie to win three medals at the same event.
Skip to December, and Gu returned from injury to win her first Big Air World Cup gold, landing the first-ever double cork 1440 in women’s competition, then winning at the Half-pipe World Cup a week later. Should she continue the form, she may well be China’s first women’s Olympic gold medallist freeskier.
Song Yadong – UFC
UFC bantamweight prospect Song Yadong always seemed destined for big things. Trained by famous Shaolin masters, the Tianjin-born fighter started competing in MMA when he was just 15-years-old, forging an ID to convince local promotions that he was 18, and legally allowed to fight.