Touching display of sportsmanship unites people across the globe
With a near-perfect act, China's Xu Mengtao won gold in the women's freestyle skiing aerials event at the Beijing Winter Olympics on February 14.
While people cheered for the 31-year-old woman who has competed in four Olympic Games, many netizens from China and other countries were also moved by the sportsmanship and friendship demonstrated between Xu and her American counterpart, Ashley Caldwell.
"Taotao (Xu Mengtao), Olympic champion! I'm so proud of you!" Caldwell said.
Right after Xu was confirmed to have won the gold medal, Caldwell hugged her tightly, calling her "Taotao" while congratulating her on winning the Olympic title in her home country.
Ashley Caldwell congratulates Xu Mengtao on winning the Olympic title with a big hug.
Caldwell is also competing in her fourth Olympic Games, and perhaps no one understood Xu's emotion better than she did at that moment.
On February 10, Caldwell helped the US team win the gold medal in mixed team aerial skiing, the first gold medal of her career. However, due to a mistake she made on the final jump, she finished fourth in the singles competition.
"Taotao has been pushing triples for longer than I have, and I respect her wholeheartedly. For her to win the gold medal in her own country is an incredible accomplishment, and it brought tears to my eyes just as much as sadness did," said Caldwell.
Her warm-hearted compliments have touched many netizens.
An Asian-American journalist who works for NBC News stated on Twitter that sports, not politics or other issues, bring people together.
The Asian-American journalist's tweet
A producer for an Australian sports website added that the hug between the two girls was "special," and that even though Caldwell erred on her final jump and did not win a medal, she still wanted to congratulate the Chinese athlete who made history. "Wonderful!" he wrote.
A Canadian netizen said the hugging scene made her "cry early in the morning."
Tweet from the Canadian netizen
Many Chinese netizens expressed their feelings about the emotional hug on Weibo, China's version of Twitter.
"I was really moved at that moment. This is the spirit the Olympic Games really want to convey. They are rivals but friends as well. This moment is pretty touching," one netizen said.
Chinese netizens express their feelings about the hug on Weibo.
Although the US, Canadian and Australian governments have made dubious claims in order to denigrate China and boycott the Beijing Winter Olympics in the name of human rights, the athletes and netizens of these countries who really care about the Olympic spirit have demonstrated true sportsmanship and friendship that will undoubtedly create lasting memories.
