Put a beer bottle upside down, put a few building blocks under it, and then use a fly swatter to pull it horizontally one by one. The bottle was successfully buckled upside down on the table... Zhang Guowei, with a proud expression, completed another challenge in front of the camera of the phone.
From 3 blocks to 11 chess blocks, the topic of "PK Zhang Guowei drawing blocks" ranked third on the challenge list on the video social platform.
Zhang Guowei is in the game.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Tomita
Netizens are also vying to challenge. As long as someone surpasses his record, some netizens will rush to remind in the comment section of Zhang Guowei's video: "There are XX next door."
"I beg you, just accept it when you see it, and give me a step down." The comment left by Zhang Guowei in the comment area received as many as 60,000 likes.
It can be seen that Zhang Guowei is very good at "playing" with netizens, and netizens are also happy to see him making things funny.
Zhang Guowei challenges success
Net Red
On September 7, Zhang Guowei posted a commemorative trophy for his fans to reach 10 million, and wrote: "Wait for 20 million to commemorate the achievement."
In fact, Zhang Guowei's fans had reached 24 million at that time. The so-called "20 million" was an achievement, not a goal.
Now in just two months, Zhang Guowei's fans have increased by more than 2 million, breaking through 26 million.
On the "net celebrity" track, Zhang Guowei quickly clocked in the milestone.
Keep updating every day, updating 2 to 3 paragraphs a day, and there are many patterns, basically not duplicated.
There are not many Internet celebrities who can achieve this level.
What's more, in theory, Zhang Guowei is still a high jumper.
It seems it’s only a matter of time before Zhang Guowei’s fans exceed 30 million
However, as an athlete, Zhang Guowei has been out of the mainstream sports circle for a long time.
Only the plastic training ground in the background of the video reminds people that he is still an athlete.
The training ground was built by Zhang Guowei himself.
Zhang Guowei said that he spent all his savings for this, just for the 2.40m dream in his heart.
After the node preparing for the Tokyo Olympics announced its retirement in April last year, Zhang Guowei chose to return in August this year, the node that just ended the Tokyo Olympics, and said that he would hire a team at his own expense.
But at the end of September, Zhang Guowei suffered a fracture, and he pressed the pause button on his way back...
Zhang Guowei announced his comeback.
Split
As a sports reporter, I wanted to interview Zhang Guowei, but after learning my thoughts, some reporters who are familiar with track and field events were very surprised.
"Why are you interviewing him? He has nothing to do with sports, right? He is a weird internet celebrity at best?" A reporter expressed doubts.
"I have Zhang Guowei’s WeChat account, but he never responds. This person is actually quite weird. He doesn’t contact anyone outside. Everyone wants to interview him, but they can’t do the interview. He used to have an agent, and the agent didn’t reply. ." Another reporter said.
"I have been deleted by him." A reporter replied.
"I haven't heard of any reporter in the circle who made friends with him. I think this person is a bit inexplicable, a little weird, and crazy."
"Extremely weird, very stubborn, and there was a quarrel with the national team."
Several reporters who have been in contact with Zhang Guowei gave almost unanimous feelings.
Zhang Guowei at the Rio Olympics.
Photo by Chinanews reporter Sheng Jiapeng
"Someone is helping him take care of some things outside the stadium. We don't want to pay attention to what he is doing now. He is no longer an athlete." A person on the Chinese track and field team said bluntly in a previous interview.
Another reporter who knows the inside story revealed: “In fact, Zhang Guowei completely broke off with sports. He seems to have met a new agent and took him to a variety show. But after participating in a period of time, he discovered that his roots are still Sports. If there is no achievement in sports, the variety show will not invite you again."
After getting these relatively consistent feedback, I still decided to contact Zhang Guowei, but failed to add WeChat several times, and to no avail after social platform comments and private messages...
When searching for Zhang Guowei's name in several media that specialize in interviews with sports figures, the display is also blank.
In Zhang Guowei's body, a kind of fragmentation is vividly and exquisite-high-yield social platforms and media "no one cares", well-designed personality and feedback from the sports circle, influencer status and athlete status, his choices and dreams... …
Zhang Guowei in the men's high jump qualifying competition for the Rio Olympics.
Photo by Chinanews reporter Sheng Jiapeng
dream?
Zhang Guowei was once regarded as a new hope for China's high jump.
In 2011, he began to emerge in domestic competitions, constantly refreshing his personal best.
In 2013, Zhang Guowei broke the national high jumper Zhu Jianhua's 27-year national indoor high jump record with a score of 2.32 meters in the National Indoor Track and Field Championships.
This year, Zhang Guowei was 22 years old, which coincided with the rapid rise of athletes.
Zhang Guowei began to be known to everyone. In the 2015 Beijing World Championships in Athletics, Zhang Guowei not only skipped a height of 2.33 meters in the Bird's Nest, but also surpassed Zhu Jianhua's third place in the World Championships and won a precious silver medal.
Also remembered together is his classic action "White Crane Spreading Wings".
Zhang Guowei's classic "White Crane Spreading Wings".
Image source: Osports All Sports Photo Agency
The Rio Olympics was an excellent stage for the 25-year-old Zhang Guowei, but Zhang Guowei, whose original goal was to hit the medal, failed to even make the finals.
"I was defeated by myself. I thought a lot and wanted to compare myself. I didn't expect to fall at 2.26 meters just like London." Zhang Guowei said in an interview after the game.
Later, there were reports that Zhang Guowei was affected by injuries.
Zhang Guowei is in the game.
Image source: Osports All Sports Photo Agency
Zhang Guowei, who missed a cycle, entered the Tokyo Olympic cycle.
Among the Chinese athletes who won gold in the Tokyo Olympics this year, there are not many athletes who have broken Rio, but these inspirational dramas did not happen to Zhang Guowei.
On the contrary, it was a very controversial "drama."
This drama has a foreshadowing. After winning the silver medal at the 2015 Beijing World Championships in Athletics, Zhang Guowei said in an interview: "You don't think of me as an idol, in fact I am a comedian!"
In this new Olympic cycle, Zhang Guowei's identity is indeed closer to the "commercial".
Zhang Guowei is in the game.
Image source: Osports All Sports Photo Agency
Since 2016, Zhang Guowei has participated in various variety shows and has gradually become out of control.
In March 2019, a punishment decision of the Tian Management Center was circulated on the Internet: Zhang Guowei was verified to have two fabricated reasons for going out to participate in commercial activities at the end of February and early March. Normal preparations will cause adverse effects."
The Track and Field Management Center imposed a series of punishments on Zhang Guowei, including "dismissal and probation".
Screenshot of penalty decision
Although Zhang Guowei later responded via personal social media that the leaders expressed understanding and tolerance for his behavior and he was still fighting on the front line of the national team, but for a period of time, Zhang Guowei disappeared from the sports arena.
Until April 25, 2019, Zhang Guowei quietly returned. He won the championship in a small-level competition in Italy, with a result of only 2.20 meters.
Subsequently, on May 26, Zhang Guowei played for the second time and won the championship with 2.24 meters.
On August 3, 2019, Zhang Guowei appeared in the World Championships trials held in Shenyang. This was his first time to participate in a domestic competition after he was suspended and returned. It is also the first time he has returned to the public eye in the true sense.
However, the performance of 2.20 meters is obviously not the same as his peak state, let alone participating in the World Series.
"Later, I will slowly find the feeling of the game and find the rhythm of the game that belongs to Zhang Guowei." He said.
Zhang Guowei in the men's high jump qualifying competition for the Rio Olympics.
Photo by Chinanews reporter Sheng Jiapeng
Later Zhang Guowei did find the rhythm.
On November 15, 2019, Zhang Guowei in the video stood under the shower head in the bathroom, shook the coke vigorously and then opened the bottle cap, and then leaned his mouth up to "blow on the bottle" facing the coke spewing out.
"Long Sushui" started here and became Zhang Guowei's wealth code on the video social platform.
This self-abuse selling silly and funny video has now been liked by 1.118 million people.
Zhang Guowei continued this rhythm, with endless "Dragon Absorbing Water" appearing in his account.
In the competition, Zhang Guowei also seemed to have found a rhythm. In the Italian Siena High Jump Challenge held in March 2020, Zhang Guowei jumped 2.28 meters and won the runner-up.
This is also his best indoor high jump performance in four years.
Screenshot of Zhang Guowei's Weibo
On the evening of March 24, Beijing time, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics was confirmed to be postponed to 2021.
Eleven days later, Zhang Guowei posted: "Sorry, I really can't jump anymore, I decided to retire."
On the day of his retirement, Zhang Guowei was still performing a joke: he kicked the sandbag hanging in the air, and then was bounced away by the rebounding sandbag...
Zhang Guowei once said that 2.40 meters was his dream, but this dream came to an abrupt end under a retired official who was suspected of being a joke.
The legendary "dragon sucks water"
On August 21 this year, 573 days after his retirement and the Tokyo Olympics had just come to an end, Zhang Guowei announced his comeback at his own expense.
"It is very likely that I will go abroad for competition and training next year, and continue to fulfill my 2.40 dream. I also promised that your podium dragon will absorb water, and you will see me dancing in the competition."
Perhaps the Olympic athletes returning from Tokyo have inspired Zhang Guowei's dream, or this is just a gimmick to continue his online celebrity career.
Zhang Guowei succeeded in the challenge again.
By the way, Zhang Guowei updated the dynamic again. This time he drew out 30 blocks in one go, and he was even more proud of completing the challenge.
(Author Bian Liqun)