Milan, Italy, February 12, 2026: China's Sun Long rebounded from earlier disappointment to claim silver in the men's 1,000 meters short track speed skating on Thursday, earning China’s first short track medal at Milano Cortina 2026, Xinhua News reports.
The two-time Olympian finished in 1 minute, 24.565 seconds, just 0.028 behind gold medalist Jens van’t Wout of the Netherlands. Korea's Rim Jong-un took bronze in 1:24.611.
"I told myself to stay steady and take it round by round," Sun said, fighting back tears. "I wasn't thinking about a specific medal, just keeping a good position and avoiding mistakes."
The result came two days after Sun's costly error in the mixed team relay left China in fourth place, a setback he admitted was hard to overcome. "It's not easy to recover in such a short time," he said. "But the team supported me. Once a race is over, you move on and focus on the next one."