Widespread Acclaim for “Snowy Flying Apsaras”

On February 15^th, the traditional Chinese Lantern Festival, the men’s snowboard big air final of the Beijing Winter Olympics was held at the Shougang Ski Jump Platform. With an outstanding performance, China’s Su Yiming became the youngest gold medalist of this event in the history of the Winter Olympics. After Gu Ailing won the women’s freestyle skiing big air final and “braved the snow in the air” on February 8^th, the Shougang Ski Jump Platform witnessed the “great coup” of Su Yiming and the glorious moment when a Chinese athlete won another gold medal. The “Snowy Flying Apsaras” at Shougang Park has received widespread acclaim.

On the Lantern Festival, the events at the Shougang Ski Jump Platform came to a successful end, and all four gold medals were decided. Gu Ailing and Su Yiming won gold medals in the women’s freestyle skiing big air and men’s snowboard big air respectively. Norway’s Birk Ruud and Austria’s Anna Gasser won gold medals in the men’s freestyle skiing big air and women’s snowboard big air respectively. China’s Rong Ge won fifth place in the women’s snowboard big air. Chinese athletes competed in this event for the first time at the Winter Olympics and achieved history-making success.

The Shougang Ski Jump Platform, as the venue for the freestyle skiing big air and snowboard big air events of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, has attracted the attention of many Chinese and foreign media groups due to its amazing presence, gaining skyrocketing popularity on the Internet. From February 5^th to 15:00 on February 15^th, there were 89,113 reports about Shougang Park on major news websites, mobile apps, WeChat and paper media. On February 11^th and 12^th, People’s Daily covered the Shougang Ski Jump Platform in its reports “IOC President Thomas Bach Praises ‘Snowy Flying Apsaras’, Saying ‘I Have Witnessed the Birth of this Great Building’” and “Why is the Big Jump Platform Located in Shougang Park? (Winter Olympics Notes)”. The reports read, “It is a perfect combination of competition venue, industrial heritage reuse and urban renewal. Over the past seven years, I have witnessed the birth of this great building.” IOC President Thomas Bach said that the transformation of Shougang Park into an Olympic venue has brought surprises to the innovative use of sports facilities.

On February 10^th, in its report “What You Don’t Know About the Winter Olympics: Why is the Shougang Ski Jump Platform ‘Going Viral’ Abroad?”, Xinhua News Agency wrote that apart from the dramatic competition process and athletes’ performance in challenging their limits, the Shougang Ski Jump Platform has become the focus of attention for many overseas media. Why is it “going viral” abroad? The report introduces the unique background, design inspiration, steel “made by Shougang” and track transformation of the platform in such aspects as its smoke-free chimneys, being the world’s first permanent big air venue and high-tech help for athletes, and explains why the Shougang Ski Jump Platform is “going viral” abroad. Shougang Park has become an Internet-famous site across the world.

On February 9^th, the CCTV News show “Winter Olympics 1+1” focused on the key words “Shougang Park” and its magnificent transformation. “Shougang has made sacrifices for and been revitalized by the Olympics,” said CCTV host Bai Yansong about the park’s glorious transformation. When the epidemic is over, Shougang Park, which was already popular on the Internet, will remain an Internet-famous site not only for China, but even the world, which means that the Olympics has given it a new lease of life.

The Shougang Ski Jump Platform is an “Industrial Disneyland”. German magazine Der Spiegel praised it as an architectural example among Winter Olympic venues and an “Industrial Disneyland”, arguing that it is reasonable, appropriate and sustainable to develop winter sports using abandoned industrial parks. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported that the Shougang Ski Jump Platform is one of the most spectacular venues of this Olympic Games and a great example of urban renewal, with the world’s best skiers spinning and flipping their way to Olympic glory: “At the 60-meter-high starting point, Olympians were treated to a magnificent panorama.” The Washington Post wrote, “Straight ahead, they could see the magnificent skyline of Beijing, with towering skyscrapers soaring into the sky. Behind them, they could see the steep, brown Western Hills. And to their left, they could see a row of sci-fi-style cooling towers... The Shougang Ski Jump Platform may have produced the most surreal image of this Olympic Games.” According to the Associated Press, rusty factories and machinery remain, but the rest of the space is covered with lawns, mirror-like ponds and lots of green vegetation; one of the blast furnaces has been transformed into a steampunk-style event space with shops, offices and exhibition halls.

At present, all the events at the Shougang Ski Jump Platform have concluded for this Winter Olympics. The platform now has the most stories to tell among Olympic legacies in the “post-Winter Olympics era”. By bringing the Dunhuang Flying Apsaras into Beijing Shougang and combining Olympic venues with industrial heritage, the “Snowy Flying Apsaras” has left an impressive Chinese mark in Olympic history. After the “Bird’s Nest” and “Water Cube”, the “Snowy Flying Apsaras” will become a landmark Olympic legacy in the “double Olympic city” of Beijing.

All the visitors were amazed by the platform, and Shougang people who witnessed its construction were even more proud of it. Those who watched the competition witnessed the beautiful presentation of the platform and were excited beyond description, crying, “He can fly!” In an electric atmosphere, Su Yiming had already secured the gold medal before his final jump by virtue of his extremely difficult routines and steady landings. Zhang Xuesong from the Research Institute of Technology said, “The 17-year-old Su Yiming took the crown. I’m really proud of him. From the spectator area, the Shougang Ski Jump Platform looks like the flying Apsaras in the Dunhuang frescoes and the glass slipper from the fairytale, towering and beautiful against the backdrop of the sunny Western Hills after the snow in the distance and the huge cooling towers nearby. The century-old Shougang Industrial Park has been revitalized. It not only records the history of Shougang, Beijing and China, but also serves as an example of urban development promoted by the Olympic Games, reuse of world industrial heritage and revitalization of industrial areas. As a Shougang employee, I’m overwhelmed with emotion to see such great changes and wonderful competition in the old factory area of Shougang. After watching the games, I’ll bring the athletes’ fighting spirit to my own work, and make joint efforts with my colleagues to contribute to the reform and development of Shougang. Let’s work together for a shared future!”

Gu Lisong from the Talent Development Institute said, “The site of the Shougang Ski Jump Platform is where I worked for more than a decade. Now it’s been turned into the amazing ‘Snowy Flying Apsaras’ and a permanent competition facility. I’m very excited to be here today. I’m honored to witness the winning of Olympic gold medals, experience the glory of the ‘double-Olympic city’ and see Shougang’s remarkable contributions to the Olympic Games. The century-old Shougang has given the world the greatest Winter Olympic legacy and achieved a magnificent transformation. In this land of wonders, Shougang employees have always created glory and miracles one after another with the spirit of ‘daring to make breakthroughs, persist and work hard’ and ‘daring to take responsibility, innovate and take the lead’. In the field of the Winter Olympics, the athletes fought hard and achieved remarkable results. I’ll bring the spirit of striving to be number one to my work, dare to pursue breakthroughs and innovations, and make greater contributions to the development of Shougang.”

Su Yu from Shougang Fund said, “As a grass-roots employee of Shougang, I’m honored to visit the most beautiful new landmark in western Beijing, the Shougang Ski Jump Platform. I’m truly proud of the transformation of Shougang’s industrial heritage ‘from fire to ice’! Under the blue sky and white clouds, the ‘crystal-shoe-like’ building is so elegant and beautiful against the backdrop of the industrial-style architectural complex, just like the flying apsaras ribbon in the Dunhuang frescoes. When the past meets the present, and the present meets the future, I have a myriad of thoughts… Transformed from industrial heritage, the Shougang Ski Jump Platform is a Winter Olympic venue that exists in perfect harmony with industrial heritage. Looking back, Shougang people will never forget the relocation of Shougang in 2008 for the Summer Olympics. Today, we’re here to witness the miracle created by the Chinese people at the Shougang Ski Jump Platform. Under the blue sky, athletes jumped and flipped bravely over the white snow countless times. The pursuit of humans to challenge their limits was fully displayed at the Shougang Ski Jump Platform. I give the Chinese athletes my full applause.”

Li Weifeng from Shougang Cold Rolled Sheet said, “It’s cold today, but there’s a very warm atmosphere at the Shougang Ski Jump Platform. As a member of Shougang, I feel very proud that the big air event was held in Shougang Park. As COVID-19 continues to ravage the globe, China has presented the world with a green, simple, low carbon and environmentally friendly event. At the same time, China has shown the world its image as a confident, inclusive and open country. We Chinese people feel very proud. As a member of Shougang, I felt the indomitable fighting spirit of the athletes while I was watching the Winter Olympics. I’ll encourage myself to work harder and make my greatest contributions to the prosperity of my motherland and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”

Zhang Shuang from the Shougang Marketing Company said, “The snowboard big air final will be held today on the Lantern Festival, a traditional Chinese festival. This is my first time enjoying the Shougang Ski Jump Platform so closely under the Olympic rings, and witnessing every jump of athletes from all over the world. China’s 19-year-old Rong Ge won fifth place with a score of 160.00. In contrast to her failure to qualify for snowboard slopestyle, she has done very well in this Winter Olympics. Gu Ailing, Su Yiming and Rong Ge have constantly challenged themselves on the ski track, motivated by passion from the bottom of their hearts.”

Zhao Yixuan from the Administration Center said, “Today, we’re very excited to watch the competition at the Shougang Ski Jump Platform. From a distance, the platform looks like a flying Apsaras ribbon in the Dunhuang frescoes. As we draw closer, the platform is seen to connect naturally with the adjacent cooling towers, forming a perfectly coherent skyline. The contours of the diagonal elevator and the arc of the cooling towers are distributed symmetrically with small angles and no sense of disharmony. I watched the wonderful performances of athletes from all over the world in the women’s snowboard final. They made all kinds of difficult movements in the air, and the atmosphere was electric. I’m proud of every athlete. Words can’t describe my excitement. I’m impressed by their spirit of striving to be number one. I’ll carry this spirit to my work, bring forth new ideas and make greater contributions to Shougang.”