On August 1, local time, in the women's shot put final of the Tokyo Olympics, the Chinese star Gong Lijiao successfully won the championship with a personal best of 20 meters and 58 meters.
This is Gong Lijiao's first Olympic gold medal in his career and the first gold medal won by the Chinese track and field team in this Olympics.
Chinanews client, Beijing, November 6th (Reporter Yue Chuan) "People must have dreams, what if they are realized?" Gong Lijiao often talked about it.
In many cases when she almost compromised with herself, she always used these words to persuade herself to persevere.
It is this kind of persistence that in the Tokyo Olympic shot put competition held in August this year, Gong Lijiao threw a personal best of 20 meters and 58 meters.
She took the final step of the Grand Slam with the first Olympic gold medal in track and field events in China.
"As a post-85 athlete, I am a veteran on the sports field, especially for the shot put event that relies on strength and explosive power. , A happy veteran who finally realized his dream." Gong Lijiao said at the "Youth without Regrets" Chinese Youth Olympic Spirit Sharing Meeting held by the Propaganda Department of the Communist Youth League Central Committee and China Youth Daily on the 5th.
On August 1, in the women's shot put final of the Tokyo Olympics, the Chinese star Gong Lijiao successfully won the championship with a personal best of 20 meters and 58 meters.
This is Gong Lijiao's first Olympic gold medal in his career and the first gold medal won by the Chinese track and field team in this Olympics.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Tomita
In the eyes of others, Gong Lijiao was born for shot.
She was not born in a sports family, but she embraced this life by chance.
However, in order to raise the national flag and play the national anthem in the Olympics, she waited for 21 years.
Since entering professional team training at the age of 12, Gong Lijiao has embarked on the athlete's continuous challenge, and the seeds of his dream have also been quietly planted.
Although he didn't know much about shot put at that time, Gong Lijiao had already begun to dream that one day he could stand on the highest stage of competitive sports and let the five-star red flag rise in the national anthem.
But before that day came, what was waiting for Gong Lijiao was loneliness and boring, with more than 200 pitches day after day.
In summer, the feeling of exhaustion behind the sweating is all too familiar; in winter, the shot put on the neck quickly sticks, and it becomes a layer of skin.
Data map: In the women's shot put final of the 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, defending champion and Chinese player Gong Lijiao won the championship with a score of 19.55 meters.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Yang Bo
At that time, Gong Lijiao had mediocre skills and limited achievements.
She didn't dare to have too much extravagant expectations. What she wanted was to train a little bit more every day and make a little bit more progress.
In those days of competing with himself, a belief supported Gong Lijiao not to give up.
She didn't feel pain for this, because she knew that she was closer to her dream every day than yesterday.
But this road is destined to not be smooth.
For Gong Lijiao, 2016 is the darkest moment in his life.
She prepared for the battle smoothly, and eventually missed the podium like a ghost.
On August 1, local time, in the women's shot put final of the Tokyo Olympics, the Chinese star Gong Lijiao successfully won the championship with a personal best of 20 meters and 58 meters.
This is Gong Lijiao's first Olympic gold medal in his career and the first gold medal won by the Chinese track and field team in this Olympics.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Tomita
It was a period of time that made Gong Lijiao unforgettable.
Fortunately, she was not swept away in the whirlpool of questioning and self-doubt.
When the emotional tide receded, Gong Lijiao, who finally broke free from the shackles, learned how to calmly face pressure and face regret.
This is a lesson that changed her life, and the road to the future is suddenly clear.
In 2017, Gong Lijiao won the gold medal at the London World Championships in the pouring rain, and for the first time reached the highest podium in an international competition.
Since then, gold medals have come one after another. In the joy of the harvest, Gong Lijiao knows that her Olympic dream is close at hand.
However, due to the epidemic, the Tokyo Olympics were postponed.
Wanted but temporarily unavailable, in Gong Lijiao's words, the feeling is very difficult.
"The day the Tokyo Olympics announced the postponement, I was very depressed. Suddenly my tense nerves relaxed, my knees reacted immediately, and the pain made me limp when I walked. Everything was like the sky was about to fall."
On the evening of August 1, local time, Chinese player Gong Lijiao showed off the gold medal on the podium.
On the same day, in the Tokyo Olympic Games track and field women's shot put final, Chinese player Gong Lijiao won the championship.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Tomita
But such days did not last long.
With absolute strength and confidence, Gong Lijiao quickly returned to the right track.
She has survived one cruel moment after another in her sports career, and she will never be crushed again.
This confidence comes from everyday life.
Training has become almost all of Gong Lijiao's life.
Last time I went to a movie?
"Four or five years ago." The last time you went home for the New Year?
"Seven or eight years ago."
So, when the hands of the clock finally point to the Tokyo Olympics, everything will come naturally.
"God rewards hard work, and I prefer people who persist in striving for their dreams." She said that she did a good job.
After her long-cherished wish was fulfilled, Gong Lijiao deeply felt that her sense of accomplishment not only derives from the gold medal itself, but also from the influence of the "ice-breaking".
"In fact, shot put is very popular. In the past few years, I have been using my enthusiasm to bring more attention to this project. Now, I have done it."
On August 1, local time, in the women's shot put final of the Tokyo Olympics, the Chinese star Gong Lijiao successfully won the championship with a personal best of 20 meters and 58 meters.
This is Gong Lijiao's first Olympic gold medal in his career and the first gold medal won by the Chinese track and field team in this Olympics.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Tomita
Gong Lijiao's dream doesn't stop there.
For the future, she has more hopes.
"I won't leave the arena easily. I still have a higher goal to pursue. '21' is my lucky number, and it's also because I want to test my limits in the arena. I will try my best to launch towards the 21-meter goal. Shock, give yourself a satisfactory answer."
From the experience of the past 21 years, Gong Lijiao understands that the road to chasing dreams is neither easy nor short-cut.
The biggest opponent is not others, but oneself.
As she said, traveling a hundred miles is half and ninety, and on the way to dream, any little half-heartedness may bring irretrievable regret.
"But time and sweat are fair. As long as you work hard towards your goal down-to-earth, you will get closer to your dream every day. There is nothing more worth persisting than a dream." (End)