楚河

冬天，大概是最容易激發(fā)人們運動本能的季節(jié)了，只要溫度合適，它可以凍得每個人都忍不住跺腳，并且似乎溫度越低，跺腳的力度越大。

這是人類自我保護的本能，目的是維持身體機能的正常運轉(zhuǎn)。自古以來，人們就知道，強健的體魄是生存的保證。于是，“運動”應運而生。只不過人類早期的“運動”并不是為了競技，而是為了捕獵。

俗話說：春有百花秋有月，夏有涼風冬……冬天，可能啥也沒有。只有獵人知道，冬天打獵的難度要遠遠大于其他季節(jié)。因為冬天最尷尬的是幾乎無獵可打，冰雪的覆蓋讓萬物歸于靜謐，動物們有的遷到了更溫暖的地方，有的已經(jīng)備好了自己的“糧倉”，還有的準備把整個冬天直接睡過去——也就是冬眠了。即便有些物種會在這個寒冷的季節(jié)出沒，也很難捕捉。人類沒有鷹的眼睛，沒有熊的力量，更沒有豹的速度，想要在漫天飛雪的冬天追上獵物，這簡直是不可能完成的任務。但好在，人類還可以依靠智慧，作為世界上最古老的體育運動之一——滑雪，就是在這樣的背景下誕生的。

滑雪“ski”這個詞就源于古挪威語skith，意思是“雪鞋”，指形狀像窄木舟一樣的滑雪板。 早在13世紀，滑雪便成為挪威的國技，甚至被用來充當作戰(zhàn)的方式。但滑雪卻不僅僅出現(xiàn)在挪威，遠在數(shù)千年前的瑞典、芬蘭、俄羅斯和中國，滑雪便已經(jīng)誕生?；蛟S有雪的地方就注定有滑雪吧。

生活在地球南北兩端的人類，面對嚴酷的生存環(huán)境，都想到利用滑雪戰(zhàn)勝冰雪。這既是大自然物競天擇的偶然，也是必然。

在中國，滑雪也是一項非常古老的運動。古老到什么地步呢？關于雪橇起源的文字記載，據(jù)說最早可以追溯到大禹時期。在這里，我們可以簡單介紹一下大禹生活的時代，那是中國的上古時期，神秘且浪漫，傳奇又富有詩意，在其中不難見到魔法和神力，也從不缺少信念和神跡。這些傳說故事對于中國人來說，大概與西方朋友們心中的“希臘神話”相當。

值得一提的是，在中西方神話中，都曾提到過大洪水。只不過在西方的傳說中，是諾亞方舟拯救了世界，而在中國的傳說中，人們之所以獲救，是因為大禹治水。

在很多古籍中都記錄了這段傳說，但要說最權威的，還要數(shù)二十四史。西漢史學家司馬遷所著的《史記》（約成書于公元前104年至公元前91年），被列為二十四史之首，在《史記 · 夏本紀》中，就記載了大禹治水時的一些細節(jié)，其中提到，“陸行乘車，水行乘船，泥行乘橇，山行乘檋”。

橇是什么？有一種說法認為，橇就是形狀像小船一樣，可以在山中和泥上行走的乘具。而后人在此基礎上把它改良成能在冰雪上行走的工具，于是就出現(xiàn)了雪橇。

據(jù)《隋書》記載，在距今1400多年前，中國隋唐時期的東北民族室韋人，就掌握了不俗的滑雪技巧。由于他們生活的地方“氣候最寒，雪深沒馬”，因此他們“騎木而行”。這幾乎可以肯定他們是在滑雪了，因為可以讓人騎行的木頭，如果不是用來在雪地上滑行，那就只剩下飛行了。當然，后半句是個玩笑。

除此之外，《新唐書》還提到過古老的木馬突厥三部落，那里的人們有一個習俗，就是在冰上乘木馬奔馳。所謂木馬，就是把木板系在腳上，然后用彎曲的木頭支在腋窩下面，據(jù)說稍一使勁就可以溜出百步，速度非?？欤褪遣恢腊俟镆膸赘绢^？

要注意的是，此時的滑雪依然是一個生存技能，或作為狩獵的輔助工具，或作為運輸食物的載具。

直到宋朝以后，這類運動才有了些許娛樂的成分，而冰雪運動也不再是北方少數(shù)民族的專利，開始與百姓的生活息息相關。宋朝的人們普遍認為，冬天不滑冰，生活似乎缺少點樂趣。

據(jù)《宋史 · 禮志》記載，在當時的宮廷中，滑冰是非常流行的游戲，不僅如此，它還有一個非常文雅的名字，叫作冰嬉。游戲規(guī)則大體是，人們排著隊，在冰面上滑行，逐一劃過飄舞著彩旗的旌門，在旌門上懸掛著射手們的目標——彩球，滑到此處的人，便可以彎弓射箭，只要射中了彩球，便可以得到獎賞。

這個游戲幾乎風靡了之后中國歷史上的每個朝代，元朝、明朝、清朝的宮廷都十分熱衷于冰嬉。北京故宮藏有一幅清代宮廷畫《冰嬉圖》，描繪的就是當時冰上游戲的盛況。如果不是看到這幅畫，真的很難想象，一個游戲居然需要這么多人參與，只見畫中的旗手和射手間隔排列，隊伍蜿蜒曲折，遠遠看去，簡直就像一條巨龍。

可即便滑冰也已經(jīng)難以滿足當時人們的需求了，他們不僅要滑冰，還要劃床，于是明清時期又開始盛行乘冰床。這是一種類似雪橇的冰上滑行工具，需要用竿子撐或者人力、畜力推拉前進。民間對冰床的制作要求相對簡單，基本是能滑就行。做好之后，大家就坐在冰床上賞雪飲酒。

相較之下，宮廷里的冰床就顯得格外豪華了，據(jù)說清朝宮廷里的冰床，會在上面搭一個金屬的床棚，棚上有門，門上有窗，棚脊和底座都有金龍的裝飾，冰床下面還安裝了設計精美的滑軌。清代的冰床，相當于在雪橇上蓋了一間小房。

不過，清朝進步的地方不僅僅是冰床設計，冰上運動也在這一時期愈發(fā)成熟。確切地說，在清朝建立之前，清太祖努爾哈赤就十分喜愛冰上運動了，為此，他還曾經(jīng)舉辦過中國有文獻記載的第一次冰上運動會。

據(jù)說，比賽項目還不少：有“跑冰鞋”，要求參賽者分成兩隊，面對面站在場地兩端，正中間是終點，號令一響，大家奔向終點，先到的人得獎;有“搶等”，要求參賽者在三里外的起點一字排開，終點是皇帝的冰床前，號令響后，同時沖刺，先到的人得獎，很像現(xiàn)在的速滑項目;還有一個項目叫 “雙飛舞”，需要兩人在冰上表演各種舞姿，很像現(xiàn)在的花樣滑冰。除此之外，還有冰上射箭、冰上武術等，這么多項目放在一起比，賽程不可謂不長啊，但凡冰床里保暖措施不力，皇帝也得感冒。

中國的冰雪運動歷史悠久，可參加國際重大冬季體育賽事的時間卻不長，1980年，我們才第一次參加冬奧會，這已經(jīng)是第13屆冬奧會了。而直到2002年，我們才收獲了第一枚屬于自己的冬奧會金牌。

基于種種原因，冬季運動賽事似乎沒有夏季運動賽事那么家喻戶曉，但在發(fā)展冬季運動項目上我們從未放棄，為什么？因為運動健兒們早已通過賽場中的表現(xiàn)，說出了答案。在他們心里，根本就沒有“放棄”二字。

當他們一次次突破人類身體極限的時候，當他們克服萬難馳騁于賽場的時候，當他們團結(jié)一心、奮力拼搏的時候，從來就沒有輸家！

汗水與淚水揮灑交織，心跳聲與吶喊聲此起彼伏，決不放棄，勇往直前，賽場上的體育健兒仿佛給每個人都注入了前進的動力和能量，這正是體育的魅力，這正是奧林匹克精神。

相信2022年第24屆北京冬奧會，一定會是你所期待的體育盛會！

Winter Sports China： From Past to Present

By ?Chu He

Winter is perhaps the season most likely to stimulate people’s instinct to do exercise， as long as the temperature is right. Sometimes， it can be so cold that people can’t help but keep stamping their feet， and it seems that the lower the temperature， the stronger the stamping.

This is a human instinct for self-preservation — to keep the body functioning properly. Since time immemorial， human beings have understood that a strong body is the guarantee of survival. As a result， “sports” were born. However， in the beginning， “sports” were not meant for competition， but for hunting.

As the old saying goes， flowers in spring， moons in autumn， cool wind in summer. In winter？ There seems to be nothing. Only hunters know that hunting in winter is a lot more difficult than in other seasons， as there is almost nothing to hunt for in this season. The cover of snow and ice makes everything quiet. Some animals have migrated to warmer places， some have hoarded food and built their own “granaries”， and some are ready to hibernate for the whole winter. Even if a few animals are still active during the cold weather， they can be difficult to catch. Without the eyes of eagles， the strength of bears， or the speed of leopards， it is nearly an impossible task for mankind to keep up with their prey. Fortunately， human beings can still rely on their intelligence， and one of the oldest sports in the world — skiing — was born in this context.

The word “ski” comes from the Old Norse word “skith”， which means “strip of wood”， “cleft wood”， “snowshoes”. Skiing became Norway’s national sport in as early as the 13th century， and was even used in warfare by the Norsemen. Not only in Norway， skiing also emerged in Sweden， Finland and Russia thousands of years ago. For people living near the poles of the earth， facing a harsh living environment， they have all thought of using skiing to harness ice and snow. Maybe where there’s snow， there’s skiing.

Skiing is a very old sport in China as well. The earliest written records on sleds can be traced back to Yu the Great， one of the “Sage Kings” in Ancient China. That era is usually considered mysterious and romantic， legendary and poetic， in which it is hard to separate history from magic and divine power. To the Chinese， these legends are probably equivalent to the Greek mythology. It is worth noting that a great flood has been mentioned in both Chinese and Western myths. In the West， it was Noah’s Ark that saved the day. In China， people were saved because Yu the Great tamed the flood.

Many an ancient record has documented Yu’s tale， but the most authoritative texts are the “Twenty-Four Histories”. In Records of the Grand Historian， the first and foremost of the “Twenty-Four Histories”， the Western Han dynasty （202 BC- AD 8） historian Sima Qian （？-？） wrote of Yu’s travels when controlling the flood， “When traveling on land， he used a carriage， on water， he used a boat， on swampy areas， he used a sled [qiao]， and on mountains and hills， spikes.”

What did qiao （“sled”） here refer to？ Some believe that it was a vehicle in the shape of a small boat that could travel on mountainous and miry lands. After improvement by people of later generations， it was transformed into a tool to travel on ice and snow.

According to the Book of Sui， one of the “Twenty-Four Histories”， the Shiwei people， an ethnic tribe populated in China’s northeast during the Sui dynasty （581-618）， had already mastered the art of skiing about a millennium and a half before. As they lived in places “with a frigid climate and covered in horse-deep snow”， they “rode wood when traveling”， which all but confirms they were skiing; otherwise， they would have ridden on the wood as wizards and witches ride on broomsticks.

In addition， the New Book of Tang， another of the “Twenty-Four Histories”， covering the history of the Tang dynasty （618-907）， made references to the three tribes of Wooden-Horse Turks （Muma Tujue）， where people usually rode on wooden horses on ice. The so-called wooden horses were in fact two boards each fastened on one’s foot， supported with curved wood sticks under the armpit. It is said that one slide could carry people as far as 100 steps away. On the other hand， skiing and skating at this time were still very much survival skills， either as aids for hunting or as ways of transporting food.

It wasn’t until the Song dynasty （960-1279） that such sports began to be played as an amusement， and winter sports were no longer the monopoly of ethnic groups in the north， but gradually became part of the everyday life of common people. Indeed， it was generally believed a winter without ice skating was a winter without fun.

Ice skating， as recorded in the History of Song， was a popular game in the imperial court; it even earned itself an elegant name， bingxi， or frolic on ice. The rules were simple enough： players lined up and skated on ice one by one through an honorary gate decorated with fluttering flags of various colors， and shot arrows on their target， a colored ball hung on the gate. Anyone passing the gate was eligible to shoot on the ball， and once they hit the target， they would be rewarded.

The game was wildly popular in the following dynasties， and the imperial courts of the Yuan （1206-1368）， Ming （1368-1644） and Qing （1616-1911） dynasties were all keen on bingxi. Bingxi Tu， or Frolic on Ice， a Qing-era court painting currently collected at Beijing’s Palace Museum， depicts the pomp of the game. Without such a painting， it would be really hard to imagine that a bingxi game would have so many people to participate： some 1，600 players， or more fittingly performers， were organized into different groups showcasing their skills on ice.

Apparently， ice skating was at the time could no longer satisfy people’s needs， for they had come to play “bed skating” as well. Similar to a sled， the “ice bed”， as it was called， was in fact a makeshift “vehicle” that could be pulled or pushed manually or by animals. In comparison to the simple “design” of the commoners’ “ice bed”， the ones made by the imperial court were much more luxurious， with slide tracks installed underneath and a “small house” （with doors， windows and all the decorations） erected above. Nurhaci （1559-1626）， founding father of the Qing dynasty， was believed to have initiated the first documented winter games in China， in which events that were precursors to the modern versions of speed skating and figure skating were held.

While China has a long history of winter sports， it wasn’t until 1980 that China made its debut in the Winter Olympic Games （13th edition）， and it was not until the 2002 Winter Olympic Games that China won its first gold medal.

For a variety of reasons， winter sports may not be as popular as summer sports， but China has never considered giving up developing winter sports. Why？ The performance of Chinese athletes already gives the answer： for them， there is no such thing as “giving up”.

When they push the limits of the human body again and again， when they overcome all the obstacles and reach the Olympic Games， when they unite as one and give their best， everyone is a winner！ Sweat and tears， hearts beating and cheers chanting. Once inside the arena， once on the rinks， the athletes just march forward， filled with power and energy. This is the charm of sports， this is the spirit of the Olympics.

In 2022， the 24th Winter Olympic Games in Beijing are destined to be the spectacular sporting event that you have come to expect！