Team China members enter the Bird's Nest at the opening ceremony for Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games on March 4, 2022. Photo: Cui Meng/GT

 
On the penultimate competition day of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games, Team China athletes bagged 15 medals in 14 events, including four gold medals, drawing praise from Chinese netizens.

The 15 medals take Team China's medals tally to 47, giving the Chinese delegation top position in the table.

The number of medals won by the Chinese delegation has surprised spectators since the beginning of the Games, and the penultimate competition day was just as successful. Snowboarders Wu Zhongwei and Sun Qi won two gold medals within just over 10 minutes of each other.

Wu, 26, bagged a gold medal in the Men's Banked Slalom SB-LL1 for para snowboarders in Friday's competition. His left leg was amputated above the knee after he was injured in a car accident at the age of 20. 

Wu switched from cycling to snowboarding after he was scouted at the National Games for Persons with Disabilities in China.

Following Wu, Sun won gold in the Men's Banked Slalom SB-LL2. He has been involved in both Para snowboard and Para alpine skiing. During the 2021/22 season, he was classified in the SB-LL2 snowboard category and the LW4 alpine skiing category. While representing China in Para snowboarding, he won gold in the SB-LL2 banked slalom at the 2019 World Championships in Pyha, Finland.

Sun's right leg was amputated below the knee due to a firecracker accident.

Female athletes have also had a lot of success. Zhang Mengqiu, who celebrated her 20th birthday in the Paralympic village on Wednesday, acquired her second gold medal in the Women's Giant Slalom Standing, which was also the young skier's fourth medal at the Winter Paralympics.

Many Chinese netizens applauded Zhang and began to speculate what hairstyle she would choose when standing on the podium this time, as Zhang has changed her hairstyle each time for the last three medals.

Other athletes who bagged silver and bronze medals also got compliments from Chinese netizens, including Zhu Daqing, 32, who claimed silver in the Women's Giant Slalom Vision Impaired.

Zhu has been Team China's first medalist at the Beijing Winter Paralympics, winning a silver medal in the alpine women's skiing (visual impairment group).

"I think it's better to face difficulties than have regrets. This time I needed to compete at home, so I tried to show my best," Zhu said.

In the team events, the Chinese wheelchair curling mixed team defeated the Canadian team in the semi-final and will compete for the gold medal with the Swedish team on Saturday.