Olympic champion Zhou Yang to become ISU Athletes Commission member

BEIJING - Two-time Chinese short track speed skating Olympic champion Zhou Yang will be elected as the International Skating Union (ISU) Athletes Commission member, the ISU announced on Wednesday.

According to the ISU, the elections for the ISU Athletes Commission are to take place in 2019. The ISU has received eight nominations for its upcoming Athletes Commission elections. As Zhou was the only nomination for short track speed skating, she will be automatically elected to the Athletes Commission for the term lasting from the 2019 ISU World Championships to the 2023 ISU World Championships.

The Chinese Skating Association president and the Chinese short track speed skating team coach Li Yan said she was happy for Zhou.

"Zhou has achieved very good results at international competitions and she has earned worldwide recognition for her achievements. I hope she can help the development of skating in China," Li said.

Zhou won the women's 1,500m short track speed skating gold medal at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games, becoming the first Chinese to win the event at an Olympics. She retained the title four years later at the Sochi Winter Games, establishing herself as the first person in the world to win back-to-back Olympic golds in the event. Zhou was the national flag bearer for China at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games.