Advertisement

Winter Olympics: Hong Kong skier Adrian Yung unable to ‘control nerves’, losing left ski and bowing out of men’s giant slalom in awful weather

  • The race’s youngest entrant clocks a DNF as Yanqing organisers attempt to power through heavy snowfall and poor visibility
  • ‘I need to control my nerves and find a way to ski on this snow,’ says Yung ahead of Wednesday’s slalom qualifier

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
1
Hong Kong team skier Adrian Yung Hau-tsuen after a training session for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games at the Yanqing National Alpine Ski Centre. Photo: SF&OC

Hong Kong alpine skier Adrian Yung Hau-tsuen struggled in the first of his two Beijing Winter Olympics events on Sunday morning.

Advertisement
The 17-year-old crashed out early in his men’s giant slalom run in poor sub-zero conditions at the Yanqing National Alpine Skiing Centre, finishing with a DNF.

Visibility and navigation became increasingly unfavourable for athletes tackling the 46-turn piste, with 34 of the 89 competitors failing to complete their runs after slipping or crashing at various markers.

Yung, the youngest entrant of the group, was visibly upset after losing a ski on a sharp turn. Organisers also had to momentarily call a course hold to find his missing ski in the relentless snow.

Hong Kong team skier Adrian Yung Hau-tsuen after a training session for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games at the Yanqing National Alpine Ski Centre. Photo: SF&OC
Hong Kong team skier Adrian Yung Hau-tsuen after a training session for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games at the Yanqing National Alpine Ski Centre. Photo: SF&OC

“Very happy to be here, but also very sad because I really wanted to ski more and finish, but my ski fell off so I couldn’t continue,” Yung told TVB after his race.

Advertisement
loading
Advertisement