Yuzhen Lamu grabs historic gold for China at ISMF World Championships

ALTA RIBAGORCA, Spain, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Yuzhen Lamu became the first Chinese ski mountaineering world champion after claiming a historic gold at the International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF) World Championships on Tuesday.

The 19-year-old dominated the U20 women's sprint category with straight wins in qualification, semifinal and final, clocking a winning time of three minutes and 31 seconds.

Her teammate Suolang Quzhen, who ranked fourth at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics, settled for another fourth position.

Ordonez Maria of Spain and Deseyn Thibe of Switzerland joined Yuzhen on the podium, two and three seconds behind respectively.

China's rising star Cidan Yuzhen, who had taken two golds at the Youth World Cup at Crevacol, Italy, failed to keep her momentum in the U18 women's sprint category.

The 17-year-old had to settle for sixth place after she crossed the finish line nearly a minute behind Selles Laia, who won the gold in front of her home fans in three minutes and 40 seconds.

The first competition day witnessed another 15 Chinese skiers in sprint events, as Ji Lulu took seventh position in the women's U23 category, and Bu Luer ranked 10th in the men's U18.