At the Tokyo Olympics, skateboarding became an official event for the first time. Two Chinese skaters appeared on the Olympic stage. Zeng Wenhui won the 6th place in the women's street style, and Zhang Xin won the 15th place in the women's bowl, both creating the history of Chinese skateboarding.
The Chinese skateboarding team was established in 2017. Through cross-border and cross-project selection and other models, it took only 4 years to gradually integrate Chinese skateboarding with the world's skateboarding.
After skateboarding entered the Olympics in 2016, this niche sport that originated from the streets developed rapidly in China.
The national team adopts diversified talent selection and training methods, and builds multiple training teams. The venues and facilities are gradually improved to undertake high-level skateboarding events. Cross-border and cross-sports skaters such as Zeng Wenhui and Zhang Xin have made rapid progress, and preparations for the Olympics are in an orderly manner. Breakthroughs have been made in the Asian Games, Olympic Games and other major competition stages.
In particular, the outstanding performance of Chinese skaters in the Tokyo Olympics has further promoted the popularization of skateboarding in China. More and more young people like this sport and expand the selection of national teams.
A few days ago, Zeng Wenhui and Zhang Xin, two Olympic national players, accepted an exclusive interview with a reporter from the Beijing News. Both of them are confident about the development prospects of skateboarding in China.
Zeng Wenhui Skateboard·Women's Street Style
Did not pay much attention to the title of "first person"
Four years ago in the summer, 12-year-old Zeng Wenhui was still an unknown martial arts athlete.
Today, 4 years later, at the age of 16, she is already a leading figure in Chinese women’s skateboarding. She has stood in the Asian Games, World Championships, Olympics and other major competitions. Rare opponent.
Zeng Wenhui loves skateboarding and is enjoying the fun of this sport.
Regarding the high evaluation from the outside world, the little girl seemed to care less, "I just have been doing the right thing." She has been looking at the Paris Olympics 3 years later, improving the difficulty and stability of technical movements, and striving to win the Paris stadium. On the podium, the national flag was raised and the national anthem played.
Self-evaluation
Regrets that Tokyo's results are up to standard, but the final trick failed
Beijing News: The sixth place in the Olympics and the champion of the National Games, how do you evaluate the results this year?
Zeng Wenhui: The goal has been reached.
Especially for the Olympics, the rankings are satisfactory, but I have some regrets about the performance of the games at that time.
Beijing News: Regret is that if the big trick is successful again, the ranking will be even higher and even hit the medal?
Zeng Wenhui: Yes.
Maybe the practice is not enough.
At that time, if I chose a safe move, I might end up fourth.
After discussing with the coach, I still want to challenge the difficult moves. If the last move (tip 50) is completed, I have a chance to enter the top 3, and I still want to hit the medal.
The Beijing News: The Olympic venue, the audience atmosphere, the weather in Tokyo, and the overall youthfulness of the opponents. How much influence do these factors have on your performance?
Zeng Wenhui: On the whole, it's fine. I didn't get used to it when I warmed up. I got used to it later. The main thing is to play on the spot.
The Beijing News: In the end, you entered the finals and finished sixth. You became the "Chinese Rocket" that many foreign reporters called you.
Zeng Wenhui: Going to the finals to complete the goal, the results are definitely satisfactory.
The team hopes that I will get better and better in the future, and I will also strive to improve my training level and make breakthroughs again.
Beijing News: The top 3 women in the Olympic Women's Street Final are all young. What do you think is the gap with them?
Zeng Wenhui: I haven't been in contact with skateboarding for a long time. It only officially started in 2017.
They practice longer than me and participate in more competitions, which is an advantage.
Whether it is the difficulty of the technical movements, the overall strength, or the stability of the competition, there is indeed a gap with some foreign top skaters.
Transfer
From martial arts to skateboarding, I didn’t dare to think about the Olympics at first
Beijing News: Everyone knows that you switched from martial arts. Did you hesitate when choosing skateboarding four years ago?
Zeng Wenhui: I started practicing martial arts when I was 6 years old. I was in the first grade of elementary school. I started as an hobby class and then I went to the professional team.
I have practiced both Changquan and Swordsmanship, but I haven't participated in national competitions and my results are average.
I was still young when I changed my project, and I felt that I had a lot of time to try new things, so I didn't have too much burden and it went smoothly.
Beijing News: There must be a lot of unknown hardships in practicing skateboarding with zero basis. Have you encountered bottlenecks in the first place?
Zeng Wenhui: When I first encountered a bottleneck when I was just practicing ollie (dolphin jumping), that was the most basic movement of skateboarding, and I couldn't jump when stuck in that part.
It took about three or four months to be able to make this action stably. After the bottleneck broke through, the following went smoothly.
Beijing News: Later, you soon emerged in the Asian Games and the National Championships. This gave you confidence?
Zeng Wenhui: Yes, the experience of the competition has greatly improved the confidence, the experience of participating in the competition has also been enriched, and the heart is more confident.
Beijing News: When you first practiced skateboarding, did you ever want to stand on the Olympic stage?
Zeng Wenhui: I didn't even think about participating in the Olympics at the beginning, because the strength and difficulty of the movements at that time were very different from the top skaters.
I started to participate in the Olympic Points Contest in 2019. With more and more entries, my confidence is getting stronger and stronger. I really got the Olympic tickets in June of this year. I was really excited at that time.
Beijing News: The process of preparing for the Olympics is very long. What key tasks have you and your coach done, such as big tricks?
Zeng Wenhui: There are preparations for the route and the big tricks, because the qualifications are so late, the final preparations are still quite nervous.
For example, the great trick of tipping 50-50 is practiced every day. The success rate in the front is not high, and the latter is gradually becoming proficient.
There are not many opportunities to try the Olympic Games. I definitely hope that it will be successful once. Fortunately, I did it in the end.
Outlook
Not afraid of little skater challenges, Paris aims at the podium
Beijing News: After the Olympics, you won the women's street championship at the National Games. Is this within the expected range?
Zeng Wenhui: After returning to China, I was isolated for 21 days. I could only practice physical fitness in the room. I didn't have much training with board, and I was not familiar with the venues of the National Games.
In fact, the difficulty of the action is similar to that of the Olympics, but the game has stabilized a bit, and overall it is quite satisfactory.
The Beijing News: More and more people say that you are the number one female street skateboarder in China. What do you think of this evaluation?
Zeng Wenhui: I don't pay much attention to this title.
Maybe my goal is international competition, so the competition is more stable than other domestic players.
The Beijing News: You hit your knee during the Olympics, and you didn’t get hurt during training. Is this kind of persevering character developed by practicing martial arts since childhood?
Zeng Wenhui: Maybe all skateboarders are like this. Injuries are inevitable. I am just like everyone else.
The experience of practicing martial arts as a child is mainly about physical coordination, which is helpful to the control ability of the board.
Beijing News: Skateboarding has an increasing audience in China, and your performance in the Olympics has also played a role as a booster.
Zeng Wenhui: I just did what I could to show the strength of Chinese skateboarding on a stage like the Olympic Games.
Beijing News: Less than 3 years away from the Paris Olympics. What are your goals and what areas need to be improved in the future?
Zeng Wenhui: I must strive to stand on the podium.
Every opponent is improving, and I have to keep up, increase the technical difficulty, and practice steady movements.
Zhang Xin Skateboard·Women's Bowl
In the face of doubts from the outside world, just use the results to speak
In the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games Skateboarding Competition, Zhang Xin, who has just practiced skateboarding for 8 months, won the third place in the women's bowl.
In the past few years, born in 1998, she has dominated the domestic women's bowling event, and has almost never let the championship go by, and she will stand on the Olympic stage as she wished this summer.
Zhang Xin was originally a pull-la-training college student in the National Sports and Performance Department of Nanjing Institute of Physical Education. His original plan was to become a pull-la-training coach or physical education teacher after graduation.
She loves new things by accident and became an Olympic skater in just a few years.
Zhang Xin doesn't know how long he can skate, but he is very clear about his future goals, "Be a skateboarding coach or referee, and try to be related to skateboarding."
review
Starting from a zero base, the Olympic Games is full of rewards
Beijing News: Participated in the Olympics and won the National Games. How do you evaluate your overall performance this year?
Zhang Xin: The two most important games have been linked together. After this year, I am quite satisfied with my performance.
Successfully completed the goal, participated in the Olympics, and was lucky in the National Games, and got the desired result (champion).
With surprises, encouragement and comfort from everyone, I have become more and more mature and understand what I want to pursue. In short, it has been a full year.
Beijing News: The overall level of the Olympic Women's Bowl is very high, and there are still many talented little skaters. What aspects do you think you need to improve?
Zhang Xin: We started from a zero foundation. The four-year preparation time is actually not long. If you want to catch up with the international level quickly, you may be a bit too anxious and didn't lay a solid foundation.
At a certain stage, we will encounter some bottlenecks. This is where we need to improve.
Beijing News: What experience have you gained through high-level competitions like the Olympics?
Zhang Xin: Being able to compete on the same stage with so many high-level skaters in the world has benefited a lot.
Participating in competitions like the Olympics will also help future competitions in terms of psychological control and on-the-spot performance.
Regarding some immature technical moves, I hope to catch up slowly later.
Beijing News: You seem to be more relaxed to win the National Games, but is it actually as smooth as the outside world has seen?
Zhang Xin: It's not that if you represent the national team in the Olympics, you can win the championship in the National Games.
Before the National Games, I was not sure.
After returning to China in isolation for a long time, the time to resume training and adapt to the venue was relatively short. In the end, I was lucky. There were few mistakes in the game and his performance was relatively stable. This was also due to the experience accumulated in many competitions.
pay
The student became a national player and took two months off from the most serious fall
Beijing News: You now represent the highest level of Chinese women's bowls. How do you view the responsibility and pressure you shoulder?
Zhang Xin: At the beginning, I felt very ashamed. I felt that my level could not afford such an evaluation. When I participated in some competitions, I would take the expectations of the outside world as a burden and keep it on my body. On the contrary, it would lead to the competition. Mistakes.
Later, I slowly thought about it. When athletes participate in the competition, they have to put aside the external pressure and inner distractions and focus on the court.
Regardless of the final result, first of all, it cannot be affected by these unnecessary factors.
Beijing News: When the Chinese skateboarding training team was first formed, there were many doubts in the skateboarding circle. Does this have a big impact on you?
Zhang Xin: I definitely know some, but for me personally, it has no effect.
In my opinion, new models and innovations will inevitably be questioned. Being in them, we should try our best to speak with our achievements.
Beijing News: From an ordinary college student to a national team skater, is it difficult to change this identity?
Zhang Xin: Many, many difficulties, after all, it is a zero-based start.
In the early stages of skateboarding, that period was the most difficult, because when I first came into contact, I often fell harder, and I don’t know how to protect myself if I fell. In this situation, it’s not easy to stick to it.
The Beijing News: It is common for skateboarding events to fall and get injured. Tell me about the most serious injury you have ever experienced.
Zhang Xin: The most serious one should be the Olympic points match in Brazil in November 2019. At that time, he fell to his head, face and teeth before warming up, suffered a concussion, and was already in the local hospital when he was awake.
After returning home, I rested for nearly two months before slowly recovering.
planning
Focus on skateboarding and want to be a coach or referee in the future
Beijing News: During the isolation period after the Olympics, you often post some VLOGs on social media. What do you do in your spare time?
Zhang Xin: I have a wide range of hobbies, and I prefer new things, otherwise I would not choose skateboarding.
It may have something to do with my personality. I like photography, singing, and daily wear.
Beijing News: Skateboarding has its own particularities. Competing among skaters is also a kind of communication. Do you have much communication with top foreign skaters?
Zhang Xin: Often communicate.
Before participating in the Olympic points tournament, everyone basically competed together.
When going abroad for training, I also meet skaters I know on the field from time to time, exchange technical moves with each other, and make progress together.
Like the little Japanese skater who won the silver medal in the women's bowl this time, he is only 12 years old. The Olympic Games has made a lot of progress this year.
Beijing News: Many young skaters have also emerged in the domestic arena. Is their appearance a pressure for you?
Zhang Xin: There is pressure, but it is more of motivation.
I think this is a very good thing. It proves that the overall level of Chinese skateboarding is getting higher and higher, and I believe that they will be able to stand on the international stage in the future.
The Beijing News: Before practicing skateboarding, your future plan is to be a lesbian teacher. After four years of skateboarding career, what new plans do you have now?
Zhang Xin: I hope to be a skateboarding coach or referee in the future, and try to be as related to skateboarding as possible.
B02-B08 edition writing/Beijing News reporter Xu Bangyin