British athletes enjoy Chinese calligraphy at Beijing Winter Olympics

Some British athletes tried their hands at Chinese calligraphy at the Olympic Village during the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. The efforts of these athletes were well received on social media platforms.

British skeleton athlete Matt Weston shows his Chinese calligraphy work, which reads “Olympic.” (Photo/haiwainet.cn)

As the mega- sporting event coincides with the Chinese Lunar New Year, the Olympic Village offers athletes chances to write their own Spring Festival Couplets, known as Chunlian in Chinese, a commonly-seen New Year decoration. A pair of Chunlian are red colored strips usually with black or gold Chinese characters written on them.

Matt Weston, a British skeleton athlete, posted a photo of himselfholding a Chunlian he wrote with a volunteer standing by his side on social media, and said “Enjoying every bit of the Olympics so far! What do you think of what I wrote?” Some social media users got the answer right in the comments, and some replied “China’s welcoming culture is a beautiful sight to behold.”

Apart from Matt Weston, many other British athletes also tried this traditional Chinese art. Their works were posted on the official account of Team GB, run by the British Olympic Association, which said “Chinese calligraphy is a fine art.” 

British skeleton athlete Matt Weston shows his Chinese calligraphy work, which reads “Olympic.”(Photo/haiwainet.cn)

A British athlete shows a Spring Festival Couplet he wrote, which reads “Wish Team GB a Happy Chinese New Year.”(Photo/haiwainet.cn)

A British athlete shows her Chinese calligraphy work. (Photo/haiwainet.cn)