How-to China: US expat in Beijing looks forward to the Winter Olympics

Q: How do you view the development of ice and snow sports in China?

Crossman: I have met some promising 14-year-old kids playing in ice hockey teams in China. Some of them have gone to the United States for study and they wish to play in the National Hockey League there.

I think it's a wonderful dream. Maybe I can live to see a "Yao Ming" in ice hockey.

About the Olympics, the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing were marvelous. I look forward to the upcoming Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. And I wish the Games would be a complete success.

About the interviewee

Terry Crossman, 66, also known as Gao Tianrui, is an American expat who has lived in Beijing for 26 years.

At a young age, Terry studied traditional Chinese classics such as Tao Te Ching and Zhuangzi and was captivated by Chinese culture.

After living in Hong Kong and Singapore, he settled down in a Beijing hutong and enjoys his life here very much.

He has been called "Xicheng Dama" since 2017 after becoming the first foreign security volunteer in Xicheng district in Beijing. "Xicheng Dama" refers to a group of volunteers who roam Xicheng district acting as public security volunteers, most of which are women in their 50s and 60s.

Fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese and English, he frequently helps tourists.

Terry is also a winter sports lover. He played ice hockey in childhood, joined skiing team at high school and continues to ski in his adulthood.

Reporter: Zhang Wenfang, Xin Wen

Camera & Video editor: Xin Wen

Subtitle: Zhang Wenfang, Liu Ming

Supervisor: Shan Juan, Wang Jianfen