As the election for the host city of the 2022 Winter Olympics draws near, we look at the 10 most influential winter sports athletes in China.
A short track speed skater, Yang Yang counts among her accomplishments 34 world titles. What shot her to the hall of fame is her victory in the women's 500m short track during the 2002 Winter Olympics, making her the first-ever Winter Olympics gold medalist from China.
Another speed skater, Ye Qiaobo rose to sports stardom when she won a silver medal in the 1992 Games' 500m speed skating event and 1000m competition. The silver medal she earned is notable as it's the first medal won by a Chinese athlete at the Winter Olympics.
A prominent pair in the figure skating scene, Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo was the first Chinese pair to bag a medal at the World Figure Skating Championships as well as at an international skating union even. The pair later became the first Chinese skating team to win a World Championship in 2002, and the first Chinese pair to win a gold medal in any figure skating category during the 2010 Winter Olympics.
China's first-ever Olympic medal in figure skating, however, was won by Chen Lu in Lillehammer, Norway, in 1994.
Billed as the most decorated Chinese Winter Olympic athlete and short track speed skaters of all time, Wang Meng has four Olympic gold medals under her belt.
Zhou Yang is another short track speed skater who won gold in the 2010 Winter Olympics' 1500m short track speed skating event.
One of the more recent stars, Zhang Hong won gold in the 2014 Winter Olympics' women's 1000m speed skating event--the first gold medal for China for the 2014 Games.
Freestyle skier Xu Nannan made the country proud in the 1998 Winter Olympics when she graced the aerials event and won a silver medal--China's first Olympic medal in snow sports.
Another aerial skier is Li Nina, also dubbed as "Snow Princess." Li's participation in four successive Winter Olympics Games has made her the most successful aerial skier in the nation. She has won three world championship titles in her category.
Last but definitely not forgotten, short track speed skater Li Jiajun is the first Chinese male athlete to win a Winter Olympics medal.