Still got the winter-sports fever?
From March 4 until March 13, around 650 Para athletes will be competing in the Chinese capital as part of the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games.
It’s goodbye to Bing Dwen Dwen and hello to Shuey Rhon Rhon, the cute red Chinese lantern child chosen as the Winter Paralympic mascot.
READ MORE: Meet Shuey Rhon Rhon: China's Adorable Paralympic Mascot
If you want to read about how Beijing got the Games, how sport in China has changed since the Beijing 2008 Olympics, the Games’ venues and more, check out the guide we published back in January.
READ MORE: Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games: The Ultimate Guide
With the Games’ opening ceremony set to begin on Friday, March 4, 2022 at 7.30pm Beijing time, we bring you all you need to know – the what, where and who of the Games.
The Games include 78 events across six Para sports, including 39 for men, 35 for women and four mixed events. The six sports include Para alpine skiing, Para cross-country skiing, Para biathlon, Para snowboarding, Para ice hockey and wheelchair curling.
Three countries – Israel, Azerbaijan and Puerto Rico – will make their Winter Paralympic debuts.
Check out the sports below.
Para Alpine Skiing
Image via Wikipedia
What?
The event features six disciplines: downhill, slalom, giant slalom, super-G and super combined.
Athletes with visual impairment compete with another skier who acts as a guide. The two use Bluetooth headsets or speakers strapped to the guide’s back to speak to each other.
Where?
National Alpine Ski Center, Yanqing Zone
Who’s Gonna Win?
Dutch skier Jeroen Kampschreuer took gold in PyeongChang in the super combined event at the tender age of just 19. He’ll have high hopes this time around.
China has a medal hopeful in the form of Zhang Mengqiu who will compete in the women’s slalom. If she gets on the podium, it will be China’s first ever Paralympic alpine skiing medal.
Para Cross-Country
Image via Wikipedia
What?
Para cross-country skiers compete in individual events over short, middle and long distances.
Where?
National Biathlon Center, Zhangjiakou Zone
Who’s Gonna Win?
Canadian Brian McKeever has a long history in the Winter Paralympics having made his debut at Salt Lake City in 2002. He has won a total of 13 golds over the years. Expecting to retire after the Beijing Games, perhaps he can still add to his medal tally.
Fellow Canadian Natalie Wilkie won gold in Pyeongchang aged just 17. Now aged 21, she’ll be hopeful of success in Beijing.
Para Biathlon
Image via Wikipedia
What?
Athletes compete in short-, middle- and long-distance events.
The size of the target is 21 millimeters for visually impaired athletes and 13 millimeters for those with a physical disability. Visually impaired athletes depend on acoustic signals when shooting. The signal intensity helps determine when the athlete is on target.
Where?
National Biathlon Center, Zhangjiakou Zone
Who’s Gonna Win?
Ukrainian Liudmyla Liashenko gained two bronze medals and one gold in PyeongChang. She’ll be aiming to go even further than that this time around.
Despite a disappointing Sochi Games, French Para athlete Benjamin Daviet has since put in some breathtaking performances. His two golds in PyeongChang will give him a good platform for Beijing.
Para Snowboard
Image via Wikipedia
What?
As the newest addition to the Winter Paralympics family, Para snowboard made its debut in Sochi 2014.
Para athletes compete in snowboard-cross, a head-to-head race, and blanked slalom, a race around flags.
Snowboarders compete based on their functional ability – SB-LL1 and SB-LL2 for lower-limb impaired riders and SB-UL for upper-limb impaired riders.
Where?
Genting Snow Park, Zhangjiakou Zone
Who’s Gonna Win?
British Para athlete Owen Pick may be one of the country’s best medal hopes. He missed out on a medal during his Paralympic debut at PyeongChang 2018. However, he’s since won a couple of silver medals at World Championships.
Lisa Bunschoten of the Netherlands will be looking to improve on her previous silver and bronze medals. The rider excels in both banked slalom and snowboard-cross SB-LL2.
Para Ice Hockey
Image via Wikipedia
What?
Unlike its Olympic counterpart, Para ice hockey is a mixed sport.
Players use short sticks with a spike-end for pushing and a blade-end for shooting. Instead of skates, players use double-blade sledges to maneuver around the ice.
Where?
National Indoor Stadium, Beijing Zone
Who’s Gonna Win?
The United States and Canada tend to dominate when it comes to para ice hockey. The US beat their northern neighbors in overtime to bag the gold in PyeongChang.
That’s not to say there aren’t any outstanding individual players from other teams. The host country is making its Paralympic debut and forward Yi Feng Shen is one to watch out for.
Wheelchair Curling
Image via Wikipedia
What?
In wheelchair curling, athletes do not sweep the ice as they would in the Olympics. This makes the throw even more important.
Curlers use a stick that hooks onto the handle of the stone to deliver a throw. Instead of sliding to deliver a throw, athletes push the stone from a stationary position.
Where?
National Aquatics Center, Beijing Zone
Who’s Gonna Win?
China’s Haitao Wang won the country’s first wheelchair curling gold in PyeongChang. Having had a winning streak since then, he’ll hope to impress in front of a home crowd.
Kristina Ulander will hope to get Sweden back on the Paralympic wheelchair curling podium for the first time since 2010. She made her debut at Sochi in 2014 and has helped her country win medals in a number of World Championships.
As with the Winter Olympics, strict COVID-19 policies remain in place during the Paralympic Winter Games. That means that all Para athletes, coaches, media and anyone else involved will have to stay in a closed-loop environment.
As for tickets, the same policy remains in place; only those invited as part of an “adapted program” can attend.
Even though you likely won’t be attending, we hope you’ll be able to appreciate the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in whatever way you can.
The Games run until March 13. Enjoy!
[Cover image via Instagram/@beijing2022]
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