Paris Olympics: 5 young Chinese women hoping to make waves and more on their Games debuts
- These potential stars have excelled in events such as gymnastics and shooting, as well as the newer sports of breaking, surfing and climbing
Five young women making their Olympic debuts will be among the hundreds of athletes in China’s contingent at the Paris Games.
While they might not yet be household names such as Li Na or Eileen Gu, these rising stars already boast impressive track records – and may well make history this summer.
Among a 405-strong squad, which includes 42 Olympic gold medallists, here are some new faces we think could soon be global stars.
Liu Qingyi (Breaking)
As breaking, the athletic, acrobatic street dance style influenced by hip hop, joins the official Olympics line-up this summer, 17-year-old Liu Qingyi has emerged as one of the names to watch.
Liu, who competes under the moniker B-Girl 671 – a homophonous play on her name – burst onto the global circuit in 2022, sweeping several major titles in only her first year competing outside Asia.
Known for her explosive power moves, she quickly won two solo titles at tournaments in Slovakia and Portugal, followed by a silver medal at the WDSF World Breaking Championships in South Korea that same year.
She qualified for Paris by taking the women’s gold medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games last October, when she battled her way to a 2-1 victory over Japan’s Ami Yuasa, who had beaten her to the top spot in 2022.
