On July 4, the China Skating Association issued an announcement deciding to award Ren Ziwei, the short-track speed skating champion at the Beijing Winter Olympics, the title of international athlete.

  Ren Ziwei said, "Youth is to keep chasing dreams. I am still the young man with golden dreams. There will be more exciting and infinite possibilities in the future."

The patriotism, self-confidence and hard work of the young generation of athletes have set up a spiritual road sign for the new era, and they have graced the world podium.

A reporter from China Youth Daily and China Youth Daily recently interviewed Winter Olympic champion Ren Ziwei.

Fighting because of love, "elephant" grows into "flying elephant"

  When asked on different occasions why he chose short track speed skating, Ren Ziwei always said with a smile: "I really like it, and I really enjoy running on the ice rink."

Ren Ziwei is 24 years old this year, and his love has allowed him to "slide" all the way to the city team, the provincial team, and then to the national team.

  In fact, as a child Ren Ziwei, like many children who "love and hate" interest classes, would also be lazy during training, and would be scolded after being caught by his father.

"Dad would accompany and supervise every training session. Slowly, it became a habit to persist in training until the end." He recalled that once the coach asked to run 100 laps on the playground, but he did not expect to persevere. .

  Athlete careers are always accompanied by big and small injuries and choices.

When he was in the third year of junior high school, Ren Ziwei faced his first choice: he was injured for two consecutive years, insisted on training or returned to his studies completely?

"When I was injured in the first year, I could accept it in my heart. But when I was injured again in the second year and lay on the bed in a plaster cast, I began to doubt whether I could persevere and whether I would continue to be injured in the future. There was already a shadow in my heart. "

  During that time, although he didn't know "what the future road is like", he still couldn't let go of his love for short track speed skating.

"With the encouragement of my parents and enlightenment coaches, I slowly recovered and regained my confidence, and I really persevered. This is my love for short track speed skating. In front of my dreams, no difficulties are worth mentioning. "When he graduated from junior high school, he firmly chose to continue to stand on the ice rink.

  In March 2014, Ren Ziwei, who participated in the international competition for the first time, won the men's 3000-meter relay championship at the World Youth Short Track Speed ​​Skating Championships.

Seven months later, he was selected for the China National Short Track Speed ​​Skating Team, becoming the youngest member of the team at the time.

  "Every stage has its difficulties." Ren Ziwei told the China Youth Daily and China Youth Daily reporter that at that time he not only had to face high-intensity training, but also faced the discomfort after leaving his hometown. New Year's Eve in Beijing, I can't have a reunion dinner at home as usual, and I will be very sad looking at the empty streets."

  That year, he gained a nickname "Elephant".

Ren Ziwei said frankly: "Now everyone thinks that the elephant is a fierce skating method for me, and that I am stable and reliable. But in fact, it was because when I first arrived in the national team, my movements were not beautiful, and because of my big physique, the coach joked that I was good at skating. Like an elephant. But I also want to prove myself, so I need to train hard every day, at least let the coach see my determination and attitude.”

  Short track speed skating, as a sport full of charm and spectacle, not only combines speed and skills, but also tests the tactical cooperation between people, which requires athletes to fully train.

Today's Ren Ziwei has stood on the world stage many times to win gold and silver for China, and has been described by many netizens and media as a "flying elephant on ice".

  From "Elephant" to "Flying Elephant", Ren Ziwei said with emotion: "The 8 years in the national team have gone by in a flash. Maybe I once felt that time passed very slowly and training was very tiring, but now I look back on the road I have traveled. Every day of training, every game is finding and solving problems, progress and results are accumulated little by little, no one can achieve it overnight.”

  In his view, winning the Olympic gold medal is the highest dream of all athletes.

"For me, the dream of winning the championship is too far away, and I need to set a small goal for myself at each stage. When I first arrived in the national team, I thought about how to participate in the World Cup; after the individual game, I thought about how Can participate in the team relay; after the World Cup, prepare to participate in the Olympics; after winning the silver medal in the last Winter Olympics, I will think about how to persist in the next four years to sprint for the gold medal.”

  In this way, following the small goals he set, Ren Ziwei became a "double gold winner" in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

He said: "I like short track speed skating, enjoy the process of fighting with my teammates, and enjoy the feeling of galloping on the field. From the moment I stepped off the podium, I will keep my original intention and continue to strive for this Love and work hard."

A generation that looks at the world head on, self-confidence comes from the motherland

  A new generation of Chinese youth can already look at the world.

This year's Beijing Winter Olympics has also become a stage for the younger generation of Chinese athletes and volunteers who are "looking at the world".

  On February 5, the Chinese team consisting of Ren Ziwei, Qu Chunyu, Fan Kexin, Wu Dajing and Zhang Yuting won the short track speed skating men's and women's 2000-meter mixed relay championship at the Beijing Winter Olympics, which is also the first gold medal won by the Chinese sports delegation.

  "When I walked on the podium of the Winter Olympics, when the national anthem was played and the national flag was raised, the sense of supreme honor and national mission I felt at that time cannot be expressed in any words. Thinking about it now brings tears to my eyes." Ren Ziweihe When teammates get on the podium, they always point to the national flag on their chests.

In his view, patriotism cannot be just a love of words. As a Chinese athlete, "the duty and mission is to put on the national team uniform and stand on the field to win glory for the motherland."

  After the award ceremony, Ren Ziwei was impressed and moved by a scene outside the venue: a group of volunteers of the same age as him kept singing "Sing to the Motherland".

"We represent the country on the field, and the volunteers are also contributing to the country and the Winter Olympics. I thought at the time that we will continue to fight for the next day's competition, and we must not let everyone down."

  On February 7, Ren Ziwei won the championship in the men's 1000-meter short-track speed skating final at the Beijing Winter Olympics, achieving a breakthrough for the Chinese team in this event.

It was also in this competition that Wu Dajing motioned for Ren Ziwei to go first, which touched countless people.

  Recalling the scene on the field, Ren Ziwei said frankly, "I actually don't have the strength, but in the face of his encouragement, even if the fuel tank is out of fuel, I have to grit my teeth and fight. In order for the Chinese team to win, we fought to the end, we Won!"

  In this regard, he sighed: "We grew up in the best era, and the country has given us the best guarantee. We must take on greater responsibility and fight for the country. Our pronoun is self-confidence, and this self-confidence is the country's confidence.”

  When there is no training, Ren Ziwei, like many post-95 boys, likes to play games and read novels. He also goes to visit stores to taste a cup of niche coffee and fills up with hairspray for his hairstyle.

Interestingly, he also "contracted" many interesting Weibo hot searches, such as "Ren Ziwei is cute", "Ren Ziwei's hairspray has won the numbness", "Ren Ziwei can finally hand in his homework"...

  Ren Ziwei regards everyone's love and attention as "motivation and passion to move forward".

He said: "When I'm tired, I think that there are so many people who support me. Then I will fight with everyone's beliefs. I also hope to bring more positive energy to everyone, so that everyone can fight in their respective fields. Let’s make progress together and realize our dreams together.”

  "Youth is optimistic, cheerful and positive. It is the best time in the struggle. Youth is still chasing dreams. If you do your best in chasing your dreams, you will not regret it." Regarding the future, Ren Ziwei said that he will continue to work hard for the next season. , "No matter what industry you are in, you must do your best. Even if I can't win the championship, I will try my best to give it all. The process is more important than the result. No matter what stage of life you are in, working hard for your dream is not enough. will regret."

  China Youth Daily, China Youth Daily reporter Meng Peipei Source: China Youth Daily