For Sun Devil Hockey forward Peter Zhong, the Winter Olympic Games is a bit of a homecoming. The redshirt junior was born in Beijing, China, the site of the 2022 Winter Olympics and will be competing with Team China. Zhong will be the first-ever Olympian in ASU Hockey program history.
“Just walking into the stadium was just something I couldn’t really put into words,” Zhong said about attending the Opening Ceremony. “Just representing the entire country, my entire country in front of all these fans that were there.”
The ASU forward said it’s been several years since he’s been back home to Beijing and it’s surreal that he made his return to compete in the Olympics. However, he says that he was able to make this homecoming a reality because of his playing experience in the United States.
“The goal of coming to America was for better education and hockey,” Zhong said. “North America has some of the best hockey in the world.”
Zhong grew up playing youth hockey with the Chicago Mission Youth Hockey Club and later played Junior Hockey for the Philadelphia Rebels from 2017-18. The combination of playing in the NAHL and for the Sun Devils is what Zhong attributes his success to today.
On Feb. 10, Zhong and Team China will compete in a preliminary game against Team USA.
Claudia Collins
