Cradle for Olympic field hockey talents to be built in west China

Source: Xinhua| 2021-01-10 11:16:18|Editor: huaxia

LANZHOU, China, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese Hockey Association has listed 20 schools, 10 of them in west China, as National Olympic Reserve Bases for Hockey Talents.

The 10 schools in west China are located in Gansu Province, Sichuan Province, and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Gao Xiang, principal of the Sports School of Jingyuan County in Gansu Province, is inspired by the fact that his school is on the list.

"Three schools on the list are in Gansu. This is a new start for us to explore more field hockey talents. And I hope that my school could be a cradle for them," Gao said, adding that his colleagues have been looking for young talents in primary and middle schools in Jingyuan County for years.

The hockey team of the Sports School of Jingyuan County was established in 2008. More than 20 players from the school have made the hockey team of Gansu province and the national youth teams.

"Over 150 young talents are under our coaching now," Gao said, adding that more than 200 hockey talents have been raised at his school.

According to the original plan, the hockey team of the school would have been to winter training in Sichuan Province since January. But Gao and his team decided that all team members would take their training at school during the winter vacation because of the strict measures taken on controlling COVID-19.

Sun Jiangang, the head coach of the hockey team, proposed that all team members would train at school for one month to maintain the intensity of the game.

Today, besides Jingyuan County, youth hockey is booming in places such as Lanzhou City, Jiayuguan City, and other areas in Gansu Province. Sports School of Gansu Province and Sports School of Lanzhou City are also named as National Olympic Reserve Bases for Hockey Talents.

"The youth hockey players who participate in regular training span the age groups of primary school, junior high school and senior high school in Gansu now," said Zhang Xiangyi, director of the Youth Sports Department of Gansu Provincial Sports Bureau. Enditem

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