The men's 500-meter short track speed skating event is the event with the most participants in short track speed skating. It can be regarded as the "100-meter dash" in short track speed skating, but this event is not the strength of the national team. At this level of competition, only four players can compete in a game, so the competition for a spot in the final becomes even more intense.
In the first group match, Zhang Guan appeared in the fifth group. There was no strong opponent in the same group, so Zhang Guan advanced smoothly. Veteran Ma Yunfeng then appeared in the sixth favorite group. In the same group were Italian player Confortella and Canadian star Trepre. Unfortunately, Ma Yunfeng failed to advance to the next round. As for Han Jialiang, who played in the eighth group, there was only one Japanese player in the same group who had some strength. As a result, he also successfully advanced to the first place in the group.
The 500-meter final will be held on February 27, and that day is also the last day of short track speed skating.
"There are so many strong men in the 500 meters! I heard that the world record holder Sheng Xibei has given up the relay race in order to win the gold medal in this event. However, the Korean team's plan cannot keep up with the changes. Lee Jung-soo has been suspended, and Sheng Xibei still has to participate in the relay race. ." Coach Li Bing continued: "In addition, the strength of Canadian player Hamelin should not be underestimated! In terms of strength, he can definitely challenge Sheng Xibei."
"Hamelin, I played against him in the 1000m final before, but I didn't think he was very good." Zhang Guan said.
"Hamelin is much stronger in the short distance than he is in the long distance. You still remember that during the 1,000-meter race, Hamelin even led the skates for a time. His speed is not inferior to that of the Koreans, but the 1,000-meter race has to be skated 9 laps, his physical strength may not be able to support it in the second half of the race. But 500 meters only requires 4 and a half laps, which can play to Hamelin’s strengths.” Coach Li Bing continued: “So you have to be faster in the competition. Some, I even think, in the finals, achievements within 41 seconds may not win the championship.”
"Isn't the world record of 500 meters 41.051 seconds? Isn't it possible to win the championship even with a world record-breaking result?" Zhang Guan asked in surprise.
"Yes, according to the information we have, Sheng Xibei and Hamelin are both capable of sliding within 41 seconds. There is even news that their results can already be within 41 seconds." Coach Li Bing continued.
"Really? That's great. It looks like we finally don't have to reserve our strength in the 500-meter final!" Zhang Guan said excitedly.
"Preserving strength?" Coach Li Bing's eyes widened in surprise. If he said that a world record-breaking result was about preserving strength, Li Bing didn't believe it.
But these words came from Zhang Guan's mouth, but they revealed a strong sense of confidence and persuasion, which made Coach Li Bing feel in his heart that Zhang Guan really retained his strength in previous games. .
…
On February 28, the last competition day of short track speed skating, three gold medals in short track speed skating will be decided at the Pacific Arena on this day, namely the women's 1000 meters, the men's 500 meters and the men's 5000 meters relay.
In this Winter Olympics, the women's short track speed skating team is particularly impressive. It has already won three gold medals, including a gold medal in the relay race. If it can win another gold medal in the women's 1,000 meters, it will sweep this Winter Olympics. All gold medals in women's short track speed skating.
But the most watched competition is undoubtedly the men's 500-meter final. After all, it is a racing sport. The shorter the distance and the faster the speed, the more intense the competition among athletes, the more exciting the process of the competition, and the more enjoyable it is to watch. powerful.
The first thing to start is the quarter-finals of the men's 500 meters. Judging from the grouping situation, the group Zhang Guan was assigned to was pretty good. In the same group were German student Tyson and British player Ally. Their abilities could only be considered above average and not among the top in the world. Zhang Guanhe was promoted relatively smoothly.
Another member of the national team, Han Jialiang, was in a very serious situation after being grouped into the same group. In the same group were Canadian player Oliver and South Korean player Lee Ho-suk. Li Haoxi's strength is definitely the first in the group, and Oliver is very good at short distance, so Han Jialiang only ranked third in the group and missed the semi-finals.
The group of death is the first group. The two top players in the world, Canadian Hamelin and Korean player Sheng Xibei, met in advance.
"World record! Hamelin! 40 seconds 988, Hamelin entered the 41-second mark! Hamelin broke Sheng Xibei's men's 500-meter short track speed skating world record! And this result was set in a contest with Sheng Xibei !" the commentator shouted loudly, and the scene was completely boiling.
After all, this is the home court of Hamelin. Although this is only the quarter-finals, the host players broke the world record, which was enough to make the whole audience cheer for several minutes.
In the quarter-finals, Hamelin successfully broke the men's 500-meter short track speed skating world record and qualified first in the group. Of course Sheng Xibei also qualified, but at this moment he looked unhappy. The second place in the group was still the second best. The key was that the world record he held was broken, and it was broken in front of him. In Sheng Xibei's view It is undoubtedly a provocation.
Three players from the Korean team have successfully entered the semi-finals. In addition, Zhang Guan, Canada's Hamelin and Oliver, British player Avery, and American player Apollo have entered the semi-finals.
There are two semi-finals in total. The top two teams in the group advance to the Group A finals to compete for medals, while the bottom two teams advance to the Group B finals to compete for rankings.
In the semi-finals, Zhang Guan met Hamelin. The other two players in the same group were Korean players Lee Ho-suk and Guo Yunqi. The other four people were in another group.
The competition has reached the semi-final stage, and the competition has become very fierce. For example, in Zhang Guan's group, all three opponents are strong, but the two Korean players are relatively weak. Hamelin, who had just broken the world record, probably did not fight hard to maintain his physical strength. In the end, he and Zhang Guan advanced to the Group A finals.
Then Sheng Xibei also appeared on the stage, and the three people in his group were all European and American players.
"40 seconds 950! Sheng Xibei! He successfully regained the world record! I didn't expect that Hamelin's world record only lasted for half an hour, and was refreshed by Sheng Xibei here. It seems that the next final will be a pin-point battle. A top-notch showdown against Maimang!”
Sheng Xibei, who appeared in the second group, showed absolute strength. He successfully responded to Hamelin's provocation with a new world record. This result seemed to tell Hamelin that he is still the strongest in the world!
The audience at the scene also gave Sheng Xibei warm applause. Although they really wanted their country's player Hamelin to win, they also wanted to see a wonderful game, and breaking the world record twice in half an hour was obviously worth it. Today's price, next, these two people will have to compete in the final. This is definitely the most exciting and exciting showdown in the Winter Olympics.
Another qualifying spot was taken away by American Apollo. Apollo has the nickname "American Prince", and he is also the defending champion of the men's 500-meter short track speed skating event. This means that at the Turin Winter Olympics four years ago, he defeated South Korean players and won the gold medal. Got the gold medal for this project. Four years later, Apollo certainly hopes that he can successfully defend his title.
"It smells like gunpowder! If you don't try your best, you might really lose!" Zhang Guan took a deep breath, and a feeling of nervousness arose in his heart. This kind of nervousness is pleasant, and even more... Exciting.
Zhang Guan vaguely remembered that the last time he felt this way was Bolt. Facing Bolt who had the ability to break the world record, Zhang Guan's desire to win became even stronger. And today, there were two people in front of him, both of whom had the ability to break the world record, which made Zhang Guan's blood boil even more.
"Finally, this game is interesting!" Zhang Guan's eyes showed excitement.
…
"The game begins! Hamelin takes first place!"
The scene suddenly burst into cheers, and the audience was cheering for Hamelin, who played at home.
Hamelin is indeed very good at starting. In the previous 1,000-meter final, he also grabbed the first place at the beginning, and in today's 500-meter final, he also successfully grabbed the first position at the first turn.
But compared with the 1,000 meters, the first place in the 500 meters is obviously more meaningful and has a relatively greater advantage. 1,000 meters requires 9 laps of skating, and Hamelin is not physically strong enough to lead the skate to the finish line, but for 500 meters, which is only half the distance, Hamelin is definitely capable of crossing the finish line in first place.
Sheng Xibei successfully grabbed the second position, Zhang Guan followed closely behind Sheng Xibei, and "American Prince" Apollo fell to fourth place.
Although the positions of each other are preceded and followed, in fact, this sequence is nothing at all in the competition. It is impossible to widen the distance in a 500-meter race. In a duel at the same level, as long as it does not happen If you make a mistake, even before the finish line, the gap between the first and fourth place will not exceed 0.3 seconds, which is very similar to the 100-meter dash.
Just like the 100-meter dash, in the 500-meter short track speed skating, every 0.01 second improvement for the world's top athletes is extremely difficult. In 0.3 seconds, there is an insurmountable gap before the finish line.
The first lap of the race is coming to an end, and the speed of the athletes has increased. Sheng Xibei, who is in second place, obviously does not want to fall behind Hamelin. He turned to the outside, preparing to pass Hamelin.
Hamelin had been paying attention to Sheng Xibei's movements. When he realized that Sheng Xibei was about to overtake him, he immediately moved his body and made a defensive move. However, what Hamelin didn't expect was that this was just a fake move by Sheng Xibei. The next moment, Sheng Xibei suddenly turned to the inside and passed Hamelin.
"Damn Asians, with such a thin body, they can slip through any gap!" Hamelin couldn't help complaining in his heart.
It is said that the inner space left by Hamelin is not large. If it is a tall European and American, it may not be able to get through. But Sheng Xibei's figure is obviously more slender than that of Europeans. Sheng Xibei, who is nearly 1.8 meters tall, weighs only 60 kilograms, which looks very thin among ordinary Asian men, and athletes have higher muscle density. He is taller, so he is thinner. Therefore, European and American athletes can't get through the same space, but Korean athletes can get through it.
Sheng Xibei successfully gained the leading position, and he also knew that if he wanted to maintain the lead, it was not enough to just rely on defense, he also needed faster speed. Hamelin behind him is also waiting for an opportunity to regain his position.
The competition entered the second lap of the competition. If it were in other levels of competition, it would have entered a short stalemate stage at this time, but in the 500-meter competition, the competition became more and more intense.
Hamelin wants to overtake Sheng Xibei, and at the same time, Zhang Guan is also preparing to overtake the two in front.
"It's Zhang Guan!" Sheng Xibei and Hamelin became alert at the same time.
Apollo, who was fourth, was also unwilling to be left alone. However, the short track speed skating track was not wide enough to accommodate Apollo, so in the second lap, he just tried it and then retreated.
At the same time, Zhang Guan was already on par with Hamelin.
"Zhang Guan is really fast!" Hamelin felt the heavy pressure. At this time, he already felt that Zhang Guan was indeed better than him in terms of the fastest speed.
"If you want to hold on to Zhang Guan, you must take advantage of the curve in front!" Hamelin decided to stick to the line and persist until the curve.
The two entered the corner at the same time, but the difference was that Hamelin was on the inside and Zhang Guan was on the outside, which meant that Zhang Guan had to go a longer distance. But the two still kept pace.
Zhang Guan is faster than Hamelin. Even if he goes to the outside in the corner, he can still stay parallel to Hamelin.
Hamelin persisted until the end of the corner. After entering the straight again, he still failed to hold his position and was overtaken by Zhang Guan.
"I didn't defend, it was all about speed, without any tricks, and it's different from Sheng Xibei's way of taking advantage of the loopholes. Is this a difference in strength?" Hamelin thought to himself.
The race has reached the third lap, and Zhang Guan has reached the second position. However, because Hamelin firmly guarded the inside line and followed Sheng Xibei closely, leaving no room for entry, Zhang Guan was unable to turn to the inside.
But Zhang Guan didn't care that he would slip a little more distance. He was not in a hurry to get to the inside, but was ready to continue to surpass Sheng Xibei.
"Zhang Guan is catching up!" Sheng Xibei could notice a red figure behind him.
"He shouldn't be able to overtake him during this time period. Now he has entered the third lap. The final sprint will begin at the third and a half lap. At this time, adjustments should be made to prepare for the final sprint. If it is consumed now, If I forcefully overtake him physically, it will affect my sprint in the last lap!"
Just as Sheng Xibei was thinking about it, Zhang Guan was already ahead of him.
"What? Zhang Guan really dares to surpass him at this time! Is he confident in himself? Or does he have no competition experience at all?"
At three and a half laps, Zhang Guan successfully reached the first position. At this time, there was still one full lap left from the finish line, and the final battle was about to come.
The first person to make a move was Apollo, who was in last place. Of course, he would not stay in fourth place forever, so he overtook Hamelin in front.
Almost at the same time, Hamelin also began to accelerate, and his target was Sheng Xibei.
"Zhang Guan just forcibly passed me. He must not have adjusted yet. His sprint will be a little slower. Take advantage of the moment and pass me instead!" Sheng Xibei thought of this and immediately started to overtake Zhang Guan.
However, Zhang Guan was not as Sheng Xibei imagined. He did not adjust, but turned into a wild horse and rushed forward.
"Zhang Guan sprinted! So strong! Is this Zhang Guan's true strength?" Sheng Xibei sighed in his heart.
The roar of the audience has reached its peak. At this time, the situation on the scene may change every second.
There was still the last corner left before the end of the game. Apollo wanted to copy Sheng Xibei's overtaking of Hamelin at the beginning of the game. He also chose the inside, but he underestimated his own size and Hamelin's strength. Be on guard. Hamelin had suffered a loss against Sheng Xibei once, so naturally he would not suffer a loss for the second time in a row. As a result, Apollo accidentally pressed the line when overtaking. This was a foul in the game and the result would inevitably be cancelled.
Because Hamelin defended Apollo, he also lost the opportunity to surpass Sheng Xibei. If Zhang Guan and Sheng Xibei in front did not make mistakes, he could only accept the bronze medal result.
Sheng Xibei also knew that this corner might be his last chance, so he tried his best.
"I don't believe I will lose to you!" Sheng Xibei accelerated with all his strength.
"I will definitely win!" Zhang Guan has the same belief in his heart, but the difference is that the word "lose" is not in Zhang Guan's dictionary.
This is a true competition of speed and strength. Sheng Xibei showed the resilience of a world champion. He did not play dirty tricks like other Korean players, but used his own strength to challenge Zhang Guan.
Zhang Guan completely ignored Sheng Xibei's challenge because he only had one thing in his eyes, and that was the end. He has only one goal, rush over as quickly as possible!
…
"1500 meters, 1000 meters, now it's 500 meters, is Zhang Guan going to win again?" Coach Li Bing's hands began to tremble uncontrollably. The closer he was to the finish line, the more nervous he became, while time seemed to It’s getting longer and longer, and Coach Li Bing even feels like his days are like years.
"Time is so slow, time passes so slowly!" Coach Li Bing's breathing suddenly stagnated. His eyes were wide open, not daring to miss every tiny movement of Zhang Guan.
The end point was in sight, and coach Li Bing was already blushing. At this time, he seemed like a volcano about to erupt.
"Ahhh!" Coach Li Bing raised his hands and shouted: "Crossing the line! It's Zhang Guan! Win, we win!"
Coach Li Bing’s inner volcano finally erupted at this moment...
(End of chapter)