Yu Jing just celebrated at the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics with the victory over Italy. The Chinese team won over Italy with a 7-0 rout in the Para Ice Hockey. Even more expectionally Yu Jing is the only female player in this sport at the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics. Yu Jing now joined an exclusive club, for she is only the third female Para Ice Hockey player to participate at the highest level at the Winter Paralympic games, joining Norways’ Brit Mjaasund Oeyen and Lena Schroeder. Eventhough Para Ice Hockey is a mixed-gender event, it is male dominated and only these three women have broken through.
Jing also hopes she will inspire more female players to join the sport: “Maybe more and more girls will join Para ice hockey now. I want to show that girls can compete. It is not impossible, it’s possible.”. She followed with: “Before I joined this team, I thought Para Ice Hockey was fierce, very difficult and that it would be hard for a woman to play. I felt a little bit afraid. But when I joined the team I found the guys were very nice and they taught me a lot.”
The 38 year old is a former wheelchair basketball player who switched to Para Ice Hockey more than two years and instantly took a liking to the sport. “I think she performed her best. The Italian players didn’t give her special treatment as well,” said captain Cui Yutao. “I sincerely feel happy for her.”
Debutants China have been in exceptional form in Beijing, winning all their three group games to breeze into the quarter-finals.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/girls-can-compete-chinas-yu-makes-history-with-ice-hockey-debut-2022-03-09
