The contestants are taking part in the freestyle wheelbarrow race.
Photographed by Wang Chu (People's Vision)
The skaters are in the women's street style skateboarding competition.
Photographed by Wang Kaiyan, reporter of Xinhua News Agency
The contestants are in the rock climbing competition.
Photographed by Xu Yanan, reporter of Xinhua News Agency
On the evening of May 19, the qualification series of the Paris Olympic Games in Shanghai ended at the Riverside City Park in Huangpu, Shanghai. In the four-day competition, 464 athletes from 120 countries and regions competed here to strive for the qualification of the Paris Olympic Games.
Breakdancing, skateboarding, free wheelbarrow, rock climbing and four street sports popular with young people have become the competition items of the Olympic qualification series. This Olympic qualification series not only gathered four new Olympic events for the first time, but also integrated sports, music, fashion and other elements in the field, bringing unique experience to the audience.
The atmosphere was warm
On the afternoon of May 18, the first audition of the break dance project was already full. The contestants have not yet appeared, and several dancers took the lead on the stage to set off a strong atmosphere with a wonderful rap and dance. These dancers were not guests of performance. After the performance, they regained their solemn status as referees.
The referee brought the atmosphere of the match to a climax, which is rare. The big screen screen turned to the auditorium, and several small audiences danced across the air on their seats. One move was very effective, causing the whole audience to applaud. Before the start of the game, the warm atmosphere had already permeated the field.
"This event is not just a sports competition, but also a new sports lifestyle." Pierre Flatter, Deputy Director of the Olympic Games Department of the International Olympic Committee, Badi's "preview" before the game is reflected in the various venues along the Huangpu River.
As the theme slogan of this event, the concept of "younger, more urban, more open" is also reflected in every corner of Huangpu Riverside Urban Park. Walking out of the break dance arena, skateboarders and scooters can be seen shuttling on the road. Their equipment during the competition is their means of transportation after the competition. The Australian team's wheelbarrow athletes Tuxi and Danerutti were also "surrounded" by the enthusiastic audience, and they interacted with the audience.
From the inside to the outside, from the players to the audience, the distinctive "sense of boundary" of sports events in the past has become blurred in this competition. According to Frat Buddy, this atmosphere is exactly the experience that this Olympic qualification series focuses on for athletes and spectators. "In addition to watching the games, spectators can also get close contact with and understand these street sports."
Players show personality
"I'm really happy!" In the preliminary round of the women's skateboard bowl pool on the morning of May 16, Zheng Hao, 12, was very impressive. As the youngest player of the Chinese team in the Olympic qualifying series, she left a deep impression both on and off the court.
Cheerful, generous, and good at expressing, Zheng Haohao's distinctive personality is written on his face: "Don't shoot here, I'm hurt on my face, It is the way of American skateboarder Pinsen.
"The four events are similar in temperament and culture, and the venues can also be shared to a certain extent. Both highlight musical elements and personalized expression, and are new Olympic events, which are more flexible than traditional events in terms of international calendar arrangements." said Kit McConnell, director of the IOC Sports Department.
"I like the feeling of flying," said Zhang Yan, a member of the Chinese skateboarding team. In the four events, the routes and movements in the competition are decided by the players themselves. There is no restriction of routine. Different choices also reflect the personality of the players. The players can wear freely in the competition.
On the morning of May 18, President Bach of the International Olympic Committee came to the competition site of the Olympic qualifying series and watched the skateboard event first. Three years ago, in the final of the women's bowl pool of skateboarding at the Tokyo Olympic Games, Japanese team player Miyuki Okamoto made a mistake, and the other seven players offered comfort to her, which impressed the audience deeply. "Competition among athletes is fierce, but they are also friends and respect each other." Bach said that through these new sports, young athletes express their understanding of the Olympic spirit in their own way.
Explore the innovation of hosting competitions
On the morning of May 16, the preliminary round of the all-around rock climbing event was held. While Luo Zhilu, a member of the Chinese team, was struggling to climb, Guan Mingjie, a 15-year-old rock climbing enthusiast, was also trying to make an impact on the top of the rock in the opposite experience area. "I have been looking forward to it for a long time, and I have made an appointment to experience it with my classmates." In this event, long queues often formed in the audience experience area of four events, Many teenagers are eager to try.
One of the directions of IOC reform is to attract more young people to the Olympic Games. This Olympic qualification series is the latest exploration.
McConnell introduced that in recent years, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been trying to set up projects for the Tokyo Olympic Games. The projects that are younger, more urbanized and more gender equal are more popular at the Olympic Games. In March 2021, the International Olympic Committee officially released the Olympic 2020+5 Agenda, which mentioned that efforts should be made to build and promote Olympic qualification events to further enhance the influence of the Olympic Games.
Against this background, the qualification series of the Paris Olympic Games came into being, with two stops in Shanghai, China and Budapest, Hungary, which will generate more than 150 entries for the Paris Olympic Games. Sun Sibei, Sun Jiaqi and Deng Yawen won the first, second and third place respectively in the first finals of the women's freestyle scooter on the morning of May 18. "Congratulations to the Chinese team for taking the first three places," Bach said. He was also impressed by the competition organization, venue conditions and enthusiastic audience in Shanghai.
The qualification series of the Paris Olympic Games in Shanghai came to an end in 4 days, and the exploration of the innovative hosting of the Olympic Games was made here.
(Reporter Liu Shuoyang, Cao Lingjuan, Ji Fang, Wang Liang, Li Yang, Tao Xiang'an)
