China participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, sending its largest delegation at a Winter Olympics with 94 athletes. China had its best ever Winter Olympics medal finish, winning five gold medals and eleven in total, finishing seventh in the medal standings.
China won its first ever gold medal in figure skating when Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo set a new world record for the overall combined score in pair figure skating. It was the first time since 1960 that a Russian, Soviet, or Unified Team flagged team did not win the gold medal.[3] China also won its first ever team Winter Olympic medal in the women's curling event with a bronze. The women's short track speed skating team swept the gold medals in all four events. China also won three medals in freestyle skiing aerials.
Wang Meng won three gold medals in short track speed skating and became the most decorated Chinese Winter Olympics athlete ever. Zhou Yang won two gold medals at these Games.
Xiao Tian, deputy chef de mission of the Chinese delegation, described the outcome as an "important breakthrough" for China in winter sports.[4]
Target
At the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, 76 athletes competed in 48 events within nine disciplines and won two gold, four silver and five bronze medals.[5] In an attempt to surpass that achievement, China sent 94 athletes to Vancouver, its largest delegation ever (record broken by the Chinese delegation at their home olympics - Beijing 2022).[6]
According to He Zhenliang, China's senior International Olympic Committee member and the honorary president of the Chinese Olympic Committee, the insufficient participation in Winter Olympic sports by "ordinary [Chinese] people" is still limiting the country's success in the Winter Games and is also discouraging any attempt to bid to host a future Winter Olympics.[7]
They've got an endless supply of money and endless supply of bodies, and that's a pretty good thing to have in any sport.
One potential competitor, speed skater Wang Manli, the 2006 silver medal winner at 500 metres, vowed in January 2007 to win gold in 2010,[9] however, a chronic knee injury forced her to announce retirement in early 2008.[10]
Wang Meng and Zhou Yang set Olympic records in the 500 m and 1,500 m short track speed skating events. China set a new world record in the 3000 metre relay race. Zhou Yang also set a new world record in the 1,000 m event.
China has qualified one entrant in ladies singles, three in pair skating, and one in ice dancing for a total of nine athletes.[13]Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo set a new world record in both the overall combined score and the short program while teammates Pang Qing and Tong Jian set a new world record in the free skate.
