The Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics are already presenting challenges for the Chinese delegation, as the nation struggles to replicate the success it enjoyed at the Beijing 2022 Games. As of , China has secured only four medals – one bronze and two silvers – leaving gold elusive and sparking discussion back home about a potential shift in competitive dynamics.
Sun Long’s silver medal in the men’s 1,000m short-track speedskating on provided a boost, but also highlighted the current difficulties. It followed Eileen Gu’s silver in the freeski slopestyle event on , and Su Yiming’s bronze in the big air snowboarding event. Ning Zhongyan added a bronze in the men’s 1,000m speedskating on . These results stand in stark contrast to the opening week of the Beijing Games four years prior, where China had already amassed three gold and three silver medals.
The 2022 Beijing Olympics were a watershed moment for Chinese winter sports, yielding a record haul of 15 medals: nine gold, four silver, and two bronze. This performance significantly surpassed the one gold, six silver, and two bronze medals won at the Pyeongchang Games in 2018. The current situation in Italy suggests that maintaining that level of success will be a significant hurdle.
The shift in fortunes has prompted reflection within Chinese sporting circles. While the nation has historically excelled in ice sports, particularly short track speed skating, freestyle skiing, and snowboarding, replicating the Beijing performance requires more than just continued strength in those core areas. Liu Yu, a Beijing-based sports commentator, noted that the overall strength of China’s winter sports hasn’t fundamentally shifted, and core competitiveness remains concentrated in those established disciplines.
The qualification process for the Milan-Cortina Games has seen China secure 41 Olympic berths – 20 men and 21 women – across 29 events in four disciplines. Qualification races for snow sports and sliding events concluded on . The Chinese delegation is expected to have a record number of athletes participating overseas at these Games, according to the Winter Sports Management Center of the General Administration of Sport of China.
Despite the increased scale of participation, the challenge remains to translate numbers into medals. The narrative that China was “strong on ice, weak on snow” has been undergoing a quiet rewrite, as evidenced by their performance at the 2025 Harbin Asian Winter Games, where they topped both the gold and overall medal tables with 32 golds, 27 silvers, and 26 bronzes. However, that regional success hasn’t yet fully translated to the Olympic stage.
The short track speed skating mixed team relay offered a recent example of the challenges facing the team. Sun Long’s earlier disappointment in that event, which cost China a potential medal, underscored the fine margins separating success and failure at this level. He rebounded to claim his silver in the 1,000m, finishing just 0.028 seconds behind gold medalist Jens Van’t Wout, and was visibly emotional after the race.
Other Chinese athletes are also striving for success. Liu Shaoang and Lin Xiaorui are preparing to compete for medals, while the men’s 1500m short track speed skating team did not secure a medal. The team’s performance is being closely watched as they attempt to build on the momentum from previous competitions.
The Games are still underway, and opportunities remain for China to add to its medal count. However, the early stages of the Milan-Cortina Olympics suggest that the “home advantage” and perceived advantages in judging that contributed to the success in Beijing may no longer be as pronounced. The Chinese team will need to overcome these challenges and deliver peak performances to achieve their goals.
The pressure to perform is evident, and the team’s ability to navigate the competitive landscape and capitalize on opportunities will be crucial in determining their overall success at the 2026 Winter Olympics. The coming days will reveal whether China can rediscover the golden touch that defined its performance in Beijing.
