Winter Olympics 2022: The international stars to watch out for at the Beijing Games
The Winter Olympics officially get under way with the opening ceremony in Beijing on Friday ahead of two weeks of competition.
In the build-up to the Games, we look at some of the international stars set to make a name for themselves...
Francesco Freidrich (bobsleigh)
The German bobsledder has been virtually unbeatable this season, winning 14 of the 16 World Cup races on the calendar across both the four-man and two-man competitions.
He won double gold at the last Olympics in PyeongChang and, with 13 World Championship titles and 46 World Cup wins to his name, he looks an even stronger bet to double up four years on.
Natalie Geisenberger (luge)
The most successful female luge athlete in Olympic history, the major difference at her fourth Olympics is this is her first time as a mother having given birth to son Leo back in May 2020.
By November of that year, she was back in World Cup action and won the World Cup overall title at the end of the season. Now at 33, she is targeting a sixth Olympic medal.
Eileen Gu (freestyle skiing)
The 18-year-old could go on to become the face of these Olympics. Formerly an American athlete, she changed her allegiance to China – her mother is Chinese and hails from Beijing. She has talked of helping bridge differences between the two nations.
Off the snow, she is a model and has a number of high-profile brands sponsoring her. In halfpipe, she is unbeaten in World Cup events this year and has Big Air and slopestyle victories to her name also this season.
Yuzuru Hanyu (figure skating)
The 27-year-old is bidding for a hat-trick of Olympic titles on the ice having previously won gold in Sochi and then PyeongChang.
He is bidding to further cement his reputation as one of the greatest skaters in history by attempting to land the first quadruple axle in competition. And expect a shower of Winnie the Poohs, which are traditionally thrown onto the ice after he competes.
Suzanne Schulting (short track)
At last year’s World Championships for short track, there were five gold medals on offer in the women’s and Schulting won all five such was her dominance.
It is only the second time in history that the feat has been accomplished and, aged 24 and at her second Olympics, she is expected to add to her gold and bronze won in PyeongChang in 2018.
Mikaela Shiffrin (alpine skiing)
The American will likely end her career as the most successful skier in World Cup history so prodigious is her record for winning races.
The 26-year-old is potentially attempting all five Alpine events at the Games and has two previous gold medals: the slalom in 2014 and the giant slalom last time around. And it looks like to be an emotive event two years on from the sudden death of her father.
Shaun White (snowboarding)
At 35, most of White’s past rivals have long since packed up from competing but the American is back for his fifth Olympic Games.
He has won gold in the halfpipe at three of the last four and showed he was still in medal contention with a recent World Cup podium finish.