Olympic Explorer
Firsts
Breaking ground — the milestones that opened doors.
- China's first Olympic gold medal
Xu Haifeng won the men's 50m free pistol at Los Angeles 1984 — the first ever Olympic gold medal for the People's Republic of China.
- China's first Olympic team gold
The Chinese women's volleyball team beat the United States in the final at Los Angeles 1984 — China's first Olympic gold in a team sport, capping a world-championship, World Cup and Olympic treble.
- China's first Winter Olympic gold
Yang Yang (A) won the women's 500m short track at Salt Lake City 2002 — China's first ever Winter Olympic gold medal, in her third Games.
- China's first gold on snow
Han Xiaopeng won freestyle skiing aerials at Turin 2006 — China's first Olympic title in a snow discipline, all previous winter golds having come on ice.
- First gold in long-track speed skating
Zhang Hong took the women's 1000m at Sochi 2014 — China's first Olympic gold in long-track speed skating, breaking the Dutch stranglehold on the event.
- China's first Olympic snowboard gold
Su Yiming won men's big air at Beijing 2022, days before his 18th birthday — China's first Olympic gold medal in snowboarding.