China's Gao Tingyu in action during the speed skating men's 500m match at National Speed Skating Oval, Beijing, China, Feb 12, 2022. [Photo by Feng Yongbin/chinadaily.com.cn]

Zhang, China's first Olympic gold medalist in speed skating, was thrilled to see a Chinese man finally top the podium in the sport.

"I'm very glad to see my championship has been passed on after eight years," said Zhang, who retired in 2018."Gao is more confident and more mature than me. I hope he can enjoy the moment.

"Now I can say to the world that we have the best speed skaters, the best venue and we are truly a winter sports country."