Peak condition

With about two months to go before the 2026 Winter Olympics open on Feb 6 in Milan, Su's regained his winning edge and, most importantly, prime physical condition at the right time to boost his chances of repeating his golden run in Italy.

The 21-year-old, however, said he will approach the coming challenge with a humble and focused mindset.

"It's really a big honor and confidence boost for me to return to the top of the podium at the venue where my dreams all started," said Su, who had to settle with a last-place finish at last year's World Cup in Shougang due to nagging foot and shoulder injuries.

"It's only a small goal accomplished for me, though. My target in the long run is, for sure, to defend my gold at the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics," said Su, who currently tops the Olympic qualifying ranking list thanks to his back-to-back Cup wins.

"I hope to stay humble and calm to better prepare for my ultimate goal, which is to achieve good results at the 2026 Olympics and bring more glory to my country."