Chinese favourite figure skaters Zhang Dan and Zhang Hao are vying for winning a gold medal in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games despite injuries and unstable performance this season.
Zhang Dan/Zhang Hao, silver medalists in the Turin Olympics in the figure skating pairs, arrived in Harbin on Monday to gear up for the upcoming 24th Winter Universiade.
Talking about their performance this season, Zhang Dan felt a little bit upset because they won a bronze in the Four Continental Championships in Canada.
However, Zhang Hao regarded their downturn as a lesson from the life and still confident of making better performance in Vancouver next year.
"I believe we have the ability to win gold medal in Vancouver. There are ups and downs in life and I don't think any athlete can always be perfect in their competition," said the 24-year-old.
Zhang Dan and Zhang Hao are the most famous Chinese athletes for the Universiade as they are tipped to reap their third straight victory since 2005 during the winters sports gala in their home city.
"Winning three gold medals in a row will be very exciting, especially in my hometown. I hope we will win the gold medal to make a good start of this year. Maybe it will be a good sign for our preparation for the Olympics this year," said Zhang Hao.
(Xinhua News Agency February 18, 2009)
