Exploits of the ice man

In 2014 Xing heard about the growing popularity of winter swimming competitions and in November that year took part in the 21st Qiandao Lake National Winter Swimming Championship in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, finishing 18th in the 100-meter breaststroke. He then began formal swimming training, and with growing confidence he took up regular winter swimming in 2017.

When the natatorium he frequented closed for repairs that year, he and other swimmers joked that they might need to resort to Bayi Lake in Yuyuantan Park to satiate their swimming desires. Xing, a dry-as-they-come Beijinger prone to cutting to the chase, took the suggestion seriously and was soon using the lake as his venue of choice for swimming in winter. Having once worked as an economist for the Beijing Railway Bureau he was fortunate to be able to travel free of charge, and within a year he was taking part in all kinds of competitions across the country.