Teenage skater Li buds at national winter games

 　　CHANGCHUN, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- Hosts favorite Li Zijun emerged as a corp of cream at the women's singles figure skating as the teenage sensation wound up with three titles from the 12th National Winter Games of China here on Friday.

　　The 15-year-old Changchun native, surprised all by nailing a 2-3-2 jump during her impressive free skate, gliding¹ to Lee Holdridge's "Scenes of Summer", to come out a clear front runner with 125.56 points.

　　"I felt at the moment that I could do better," said Li, whose routine had originally included a double-double at her second jump. "I knew the odds² were small but I wanted to try."

　　"It's a challenge against myself and I'm so happy to have made it," said the sweet girl, who burst into tears after the successful free skate.

　　Her national teammate Zhang Kexin from Harbin was beaten to a distance second place with a remarkable³ deficit⁴ of 19.63 points. Another Harbin skater Zhao Ziquan was third in free skate on 98.28.

　　Li thus completed a hat-trick by finishing on the top podium for three times in three days after crowned at the performance challenges, a China-only event set up to stimulate⁵ skaters on promoting artistic⁶ impression, short program and free skate.

　　"The girl has done a nearly flawless routine, which is far beyond her normal level," said Li's national team coach Li Chengjiang. "I'm so proud of her."

　　Li Zijun, who just slid onto the international stage last season, has twice claimed the national championships women's singles title in last two years and finished as a runner-up at two of the 2011-2012 ISU Grand Prix junior events.

　　"She's a born figure skater," said the national head coach Li Mingzhu. "Her sense for music and rhythm is outstanding and she gets the shape and body to make clear jump."

　　Li, however, was cautious on predicting the little girl's future.

　　"Li might be the most promising⁷ one in China, but she still has a lot to catch up with the world-class skaters, like South Korea's Kim Yuna and Japan's Asada Mao," said Li.

　　According to her schedule, the teenage skater will take part in the inaugural⁸ Youth Winter Olympic Games in Innsbruck, Austria on Jan. 12 as a member of the 23-member Chinese delegation⁹.

1 gliding   

v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的

参考例句：

• Swans went gliding past. 天鹅滑行而过。
• The weather forecast has put a question mark against the chance of doing any gliding tomorrow. 天气预报对明天是否能举行滑翔表示怀疑。

2 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

5 stimulate   

vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋

参考例句：

• Your encouragement will stimulate me to further efforts.你的鼓励会激发我进一步努力。
• Success will stimulate the people for fresh efforts.成功能鼓舞人们去作新的努力。

6 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

7 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

8 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

9 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。