Zhang Yanmei

While Zhang Yanmei’s greatest Olympic achievement was a silver medal, she may not remember it fondly. With just two laps to go in the final of the 500 m at the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics, US opponent Cathy Turner, who was known for being an aggressive skater, attempted a take-over. She clearly touched Zhang, who later claimed she had been grabbed, but the referees missed the incident and allowed Turner to win the gold ahead of Zhang. Dissatisfied with the incident, the Chinese skater stormed away from the podium as soon as the “Star Spangled Banner” had finished - to the dislike of the IOC. The incident did eventually lead to referees being allowed to use television replays in the sport.

Zhang’s other Olympic appearances weren’t particularly lucky either, finishing 4th in the 1994 1,000 m and 1988 relay (when the sport was still a demonstration event) and suffering two disqualifications with the relay team in 1992 and 1994. Outside of the Olympics, she was particularly successful in the 500 m, setting several world records and winning the event at the 1991 and 1993 World Championships. She also won the relay 1995 and was a two-time runner-up in the World Team Championships with China. Zhang started working as a skating coach after her retirement. She is married to Jiang Zhibin, who is a former national team member and also active as a coach.