Feature: First Chinese Para biathlete decorated with two Paralympic medals

Liu Mengtao of China competes during the Para Biathlon Men's Middle Distance Sitting event of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in National Biathlon Center in Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province, on March 8, 2022. (Xinhua/Hu Chao)

CHONGLI, Zhangjiakou, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Liu Mengtao, a 20-year-old Paralympic debutant, has become the first Chinese Para biathlete to win two Paralympic medals (a gold and a bronze) in China's winter sports history.

After finishing third in the men's sprint sitting here last Saturday, the first competition day of the ongoing Beijing Winter Paralympics, Liu claimed the men's middle distance sitting title here on Tuesday.

This is the eighth gold for host China which is leading the tally with eight gold, eight silver, and 11 bronze medals.

During the 10km race at the National Biathlon Center, Liu, who began the sport in 2016, beat 32-year-old Martin Fleig from Germany, the men's 15km individual sitting champion at PyeongChang 2018, and 22-year-old Taras Rad from Ukraine, the men's 12.5km sitting champion at PyeongChang 2018.

In the 2017 World Championships in Germany, Liu finished 23rd in the long distance sitting, 25th in the 10km sitting, and 28th in the sprint sitting.

"China was not strong in winter Paralympic sports. The best individual result we had at PyeongChang 2018 was Zheng Peng's fourth place in Para cross country," said Liu after Tuesday's race.

"We've been longing to break that record for him. Now as you can see, our hard work paid off," he added.

"I tried my best, so I am satisfied. I want the Chinese flag to rise to the highest tip. That's where I got the motivation," he noted.

Chinese athletes have competed at every Paralympic Winter Games since Salt Lake City 2002, although China did not enter biathletes until 2018.

At PyeongChang 2018, two Chinese women and three men competed across sitting and standing events. Wu Junbao and Chu Beibei performed best, finishing eighth in the men's 7.5km standing and women's 6km sitting, respectively.

Then, China increased focus on coaching and infrastructure in Para biathlon, aiming for improved results in Beijing 2022.

Before the Beijing Winter Paralympics, the Chinese Para biathlon and cross-country teams warmed up for almost two months in Baiyin of Gansu Province in the northwest of China, which has almost the same altitude and temperature as the Paralympic snow venue in Chongli, Zhangjiakou.

The Chinese Paralympic skiers came to Chongli about one week before the opening ceremony.

Up to now, China has collected three gold, one silver, and three bronze medals from the Para biathlon at the ongoing Beijing Games.

Para biathlon made its Paralympic debut at Innsbruck 1988. Men's 7.5km was contested across three classifications. Two classifications for male athletes with vision impairment were added to the program in 1992, and medal events for women were introduced at Lillehammer in 1994.

Beijing 2022 features 18 Para biathlon events for men and women, Liu has registered for three. Besides the gold and the bronze he took in his first two, he is aiming for the third medal in his last event, the men's individual sitting, on Friday. 

Liu Mengtao of China competes during the Para Biathlon Men's Middle Distance Sitting event of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in National Biathlon Center in Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province, on March 8, 2022. (Xinhua/Hu Chao)

Liu Mengtao of China gestures after the Para Biathlon Men's Middle Distance Sitting event of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in National Biathlon Center in Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province, on March 8, 2022. (Xinhua/Peng Ziyang)

Liu Mengtao of China gestures after the Para Biathlon Men's Middle Distance Sitting event of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in National Biathlon Center in Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province, on March 8, 2022. (Xinhua/Peng Ziyang)