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Beijing Winter Olympics 2022
SportChina

Eileen Gu sends support to ‘strong and beautiful people of Shanghai’ amid Covid-19 crisis

  • Double Olympic champion says ‘my heart is with’ the residents of Chinese city as they battle wave of Covid-19 infections and lockdowns
  • Gu continues her media tour of China, making appearance at Ice and Snow Night Gala where she is mobbed by adoring young fans

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Chinese Olympian Eileen Gu reacts after being mobbed by fans and journalists during her arrival at the awards ceremony for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games at the Great Hall of the People on April 8, 2022. Photo: EPA-EFE/Mark R. Cristino
Nicolas Atkin

Double Winter Olympic freestyle skiing champion Eileen Gu has sent a message of support to Shanghai as the city battles a wave of Covid-19 infections, with frustrations among residents reaching boiling point over lockdowns.

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Shanghai reported its first deaths from the current Covid-19 wave on Monday after more than two weeks of lockdown. All 16 districts across the city of 25 million people have adopted a strategy of “static management of the whole region” to stop the spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

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Police in Shanghai scuffle with residents over Covid-19 quarantine measures

Police in Shanghai scuffle with residents over Covid-19 quarantine measures

Videos circulating on social media last week showed angry residents protesting and clashing with police, as well as venting their anger by screaming in unison from their balconies.

“My heart is with the strong and beautiful people of Shanghai,” 18-year-old Gu wrote in a post on her Instagram story.

Eileen Gu shares a message of support for Shanghai on her Instagram story.
Eileen Gu shares a message of support for Shanghai on her Instagram story.

US-born Gu, who lives in California, continued her media tour of China at the weekend, making an appearance at the China Ice and Snow Night Gala, an event held to pay tribute to those who contributed to the Beijing Games

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The part-time model – who won gold in the big air and half-pipe events in Beijing in February, and silver in slopestyle – spoke about empowering young people to “change the world”.

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