Sidney Chu finished third in his Beijing Winter Olympics men’s 500m short-track speedskating heat at the Capital Indoor Stadium on Friday night, making history as Hong Kong’s first-ever athlete to take part in the event. The 22-year-old clocked a time of 44.90 seconds as reigning Olympic champion Wu Dajing and world championship bronze medallist Pietro Sighel eased through to the next rounds with 40.24 and 40.37, respectively. Though he did not qualify or set a new personal best, Chu said he left the rink with invaluable experience. Meanwhile, European championship silver medallist Dylan Hoogerwerf rounded up the heat with a “Did Not Finish” after slipping midway. “The result was not ideal, but to compete next to Wu Dajing is already an incredible achievement,” world No 80 Chu told TVB after the race, adding that he was forced to slow down after Dutchman Hoogerwerf clipped him at the start line. “It’s a pity, especially because I wasn’t used to starting next to my opponents. But I have completed my mission of challenging myself and keeping up with the top-ranked skaters in the world, which has already helped me develop a lot. “Although I didn’t break my personal best or performed to my ultimate abilities, I’m still very satisfied.” The quartet were tense from the blocks after a false start from Hoogerwerf, before Wu and Sighel inevitably took control. It was clear that Chu, who expected a “very difficult race” against in-form Wu, had been working on his start-line reactions with Hong Kong head coach and two-time Olympic silver medallist Sun Dandan in the lead-up. Though Chu’s Winter Olympic debut was short and sweet, he was thankful for all the attention he received from Hong Kong fans, in the lead-up and as opening ceremony flag-bearer. “Thank you to everyone for supporting – I know a lot of you were watching from the TV,” he said. “We really gave it our best, and I hope this helps to improve and expand our team in the future. “Our team has a lot of high quality athletes, not just me, so I hope more people pay more attention to the sport after this. “We are honoured to be able to compete here. It’s been a tough road to get here, so we also appreciate all the help from the various sports governing bodies. We wouldn’t be here today without them.” Chu, who studies at the George Washington University in the US, was unable to say if he would continue his athletic career. “At the moment, I’m not sure. We have the world championships next month, so I’ve not thought about that. I still enjoy being an athlete, but I need to assess after a few days as it’s been hard to do both at the same time,” he said. Wu, who already bagged one gold medal in a controversial mixed team relay on Tuesday, looks to be one of the favourites as he prepares for the final rounds on Sunday. The man from Heilongjiang clocked well short of his staggering world record run of 39.505 seconds and Olympic record of 38.584, both set in 2018. Second-placed Sighel, who is a law enforcement officer in his home of Italy, also impressed in the heat. Though he is considered a step behind Wu, his recent world championship outings suggest he could be a dark horse in the knockouts. In the previous events: Liu Shaolin (Hungary) and Sebastien Lepape (France) qualified from heat one; Ren Ziwei (China) and Adil Galiakhmetov (Kazakhstan) from heat two; Steven Dubois (Canada) and Pavel Sitnikov (Russian Olympic Committee) from heat three; Denis Nikisha (Kazakstan) and Jordan Pierre-Gilles (Canada) from heat four; Ivliev Konstantin (Russian Olympic Committee) and John-Henry Krueger (Hungary) from heat five; Abzal Azhgaliyev (Kazakhstan) and Hwang Dae-heon (South Korea) from heat six; and Liu Shaoang (Hungary), Vladislav Bykanov (Israel) and Sun Long (China) from heat seven. With two of Hong Kong’s three record-breaking athlete finished with their events, alpine skier Adrian Yung Hau-tsuen will close the city’s campaign in the men’s giant slalom and slalom at the Yanqing National Alpine Ski Centre on February 13 and 16, respectively.