LOOKING back to about three years ago, 30-year-old Russian ice hockey coach Odnoshivkin Evgenii found the biggest change taking place in recent years is that more and more children participate in his ice hockey team.

Before coming to China, Evgenii obtained a Master’s degree in training from Tyumen State University. He has led several ice hockey youth teams in Russia.

In 2018, Evgenii was invited to be the coach of a youth ice hockey club in Beijing. At that time, he was amazed by how good the infrastructure and facilities are in China. Later, he was transferred to another club called Beijing Capitals Hockey Club.

Compared to his country, Evgenii realized what China lacked is the popularity of ice hockey. “In Russia, a youth ice hockey team usually includes 20 players, but in China, there are only 10 players.”

However, as China put more effort to promote ice and snow sports, Evgenii saw that many more kids participated in ice hockey, even including some kindergarteners. “The earlier you participate in ice and snow sports, the more experience you will get.”

In Evgenii’s eyes, the healthy development of ice and snow sports is inseparable from the deep mass foundation and mature sports culture. “In Russia, people love winter sports. It’s hard to find a child who can’t skate. When I was 7 years old, I went to watch the ice hockey game. I saw the audience cheer for the players. I imagined that one day I would become a member of the team and enjoy the cheers and shouts of the audiences.” (Xinhua)