Photo: Cui Meng/GT

Chinese short track speed skaters have shown room for improvement after a lackluster performance at the home short track world championships in Beijing,MK sport as they only bagged a silver medal and a bronze medal during the three-day competitions.

Adding on Liu Shaoang's bronze medal in the men's 1,500 meters, the Chinese men's relay team secured a silver medal in the 5,000m relay on Sunday.

Liu managed to participate in Sunday's competitions with three stitches on his knee. His presence on the rink won wide applause from the spectators in the Capital Indoor Stadium. 

"This competition was challenging, and I was injured, but I'm still happy as we did not give up," Liu told the Global Times after finishing the competition. 

"All the doctors and national team officials preferred me not to skate today but I insisted. I still wanted to take the field. I didn't give up in my mind," he said of his appearance on Sunday after the Saturday injury.

The Canadian team was the biggest winner at the event, with their athletes making it onto the podium in all nine disciplines and winning six gold medals.

Chinese skater Sun Long, a three-time world champion, did not deliver what fans had hoped for in the event.

"The gap behind the winners doesn't mean we can't skate faster than them. It was the collisions on the track that caused us to fall behind," Sun told the Global Times, referring to the men's relay team's second-place finish after the Canadian team won with 6:41.271, 0.569 seconds ahead of China.

He also noted that the experience at the tournament will help the Chinese athletes grow.

"Short track speed skating is full of unpredictability... Some aspects where I didn't perform well in the competition are actually valuable experiences and opportunities for growth," Sun said. 

"After summarizing them and turning them into experience, they may be more valuable than medals. We will carry these issues and start training for the next season."

Veteran Fan Kexin, a Beijing 2022 Olympics gold medalist in the mixed relay, also did not lament her teammates after the Chinese relay team did not make into the final in the discipline.

"No one wants to make mistakes. However, since the mistakes happened, we have to find ways to fix them," Fan told reporters.

"Mistakes can make an athlete grow faster, because I also have the experience of making mistakes when I was a young player. Everyone has to go through this process." 

"In any case, no matter what problems arise, our team will bear them together and summarize the lessons learned, so as to avoid making the same mistakes in the future." 

After the women's relay team was eliminated in the semifinals, 24-year-old Chinese female skater Wang Xinran said the team is determined to learn from the setback.

"We still have a long way to go. We need to learn from this lesson and turn it into experience," Wang told reporters. "We have a lot of room for improvement in all aspects, from the handovers to the skating routes, including rhythm and physical fitness." 

Another skater, Zhang Chutong, an Olympic bronze medalist in the women's 3,000 meters relay, said she hopes fans will not get too worried about the team even though their performance did not meet expectations.

"This season has been quite unique. Many major competitions were held in China, such as the Asian Winter Games, the ISU World Tour and the World Championships," Zhang told reporters. 

"Despite encountering numerous challenges and difficulties along the way, we've always faced them with unity. Our top priority remains to prepare for the Milan Winter Olympics next year. We hope no one worries. We're certain to keep getting better." 

China's 19-year-old skater Wang Ye, whose serious injury on her right leg during the World Tour event in Beijing in December 2024 dealt a big blow to China's female squad, also appeared on the sidelines of the arena to voice her support for the national team. 

"I've had to deal with the injury and my subsequent life in a composed manner," she said. 

Wang Ye is confident that with the help of her rehabilitation team, she can overcome this difficulty as she eyes a full recovery before the Olympics. "Every athlete wants to win at the Olympics, and I am no exception. Even though I am still in the rehabilitation stage, I will still hold this belief," she said. 

While the team has experienced setbacks, hosting the tournament has boosted short track's popularity in the country, especially as it was the second time the Capital Indoor Stadium hosted the event.

Qu Li, a seasoned short track referee who also participated in the 2005 Worlds in Beijing, hailed the fast progress of short track in China.

"The development speed of the youth short track speed skating in recent years has completely exceeded my expectations," Qu told reporters. 

"We hope that through the organization of competitions, we can provide fair competition for young skaters and promote the better development of the sport."