At the Tokyo Olympics, the Chinese taekwondo team won only one bronze medal and experienced extremely bitter and difficult moments.
In the past 2022, the Chinese Taekwondo team has been changing under pressure and rising from the trough. It has won 36 gold medals, 27 silver medals, and 33 bronze medals in international competitions throughout the year. A group of outstanding new-generation players have emerged in the competition .
Facing the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Chinese Taekwondo team is racing against time and non-stop preparing for the training camp.
Last year's results met expectations
"Taekwondo has its particularity. The last Olympic Games has just ended, and the points competition for the next Olympic cycle will begin immediately." Guan Jianmin, chairman of the Chinese Taekwondo Association and head coach of the national Taekwondo team, said.
The Tokyo Olympics inspired the determination of the entire national team to prove themselves in international competitions.
Since May last year, the Chinese Taekwondo team has participated in more than 10 international competitions, including the World Taekwondo Grand Prix Finals, World Championships and Asian Championships.
In December last year, Chinese players Luo Zongshi and Zhang Mengyu won 1 gold and 1 silver in the Grand Prix finals held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
In 2022, the Chinese team won a total of 36 gold medals, 27 silver medals and 33 bronze medals.
"Overall, the national team has completed the set goals before the game." Guan Jianmin said, "Many young athletes have successfully integrated into the national team. At each level, athletes have defeated world champions, Olympic champions and other masters and achieved new breakthroughs. Accumulated competition experience and enhanced confidence.”
In Guan Jianmin's view, hard training has achieved ideal results, which is an important reason for the players' excellent performance in the international arena in the 2022 season.
Among a series of good achievements, Luo Zongshi performed outstandingly.
From the Tokyo Olympic cycle to the Paris Olympic cycle, she has gradually grown from a former training partner to the "leading goose" of the Taekwondo team.
The 24-year-old has won all 10 races she has participated in this past season.
In the latest Olympic points ranking in 2023, Luo Zongshi topped the list in the women's category below 57 kg.
"These results have allowed me to gain a lot of Olympic points. These competitions have further enhanced my confidence and made me more confident and calm on the field." Luo Zongshi said.
Young players show up
In Luo Zongshi's view, the key to his victory is to give full play to his technical advantages, and this is also the direction that the national team will focus on in the next training.
On January 10, the first national taekwondo team training in 2023 began at the Shanxi Sports Center.
Among the 38 athletes participating in the training camp, Liang Yushuai, Guo Qing and others also made it to the podium in the World Championships not long ago.
The Paris Olympics is approaching, and this year's training is crucial to preparing for the new cycle of the Olympics.
"The training camp will pay close attention to the details. The first is to strengthen the physical fitness, the second is to strengthen the strengths of the athletes, and the third is to improve the superior skills of the athletes." Guan Jianmin introduced the three key points of this year's training camp.
Guan Jianmin introduced that at present, many members of the national team are post-00s. "Young players are hardworking, but they need to use their superior skills and have effective scoring points in the game. Therefore, it is very important to train players to learn to use the scoring skills they are good at."
Luo Zongshi, Liang Yushuai, etc. have emerged in the international arena. They have become the research targets of other opponents and will face unprecedented challenges in future competitions.
"However, I think this is also a kind of motivation, urging myself to continue to train hard and make progress." Luo Zongshi said.
Guan Jianmin said: "In the new year, I hope that the players will make great improvements in terms of psychological quality, adapting to the field environment, and using technology to control opponents."
Go all out for "tickets"
According to the qualification rules for Taekwondo in the Paris Olympic Games, the top 5 players in each of the 8 levels will get a seat for their respective National (Regional) Olympic Committees.
At present, except for Luo Zongshi who has a greater advantage in the women's class below 57 kg, only Liang Yushuai in the men's class below 58 kg and Guo Qing in the women's class below 49 kg rank in the top 10.
Guan Jianmin said that entering the Paris Olympic cycle, young players need to catch up with the Olympic points of athletes from other national (regional) Olympic committees from scratch, and the gap will be relatively large at the beginning. "
The good news is that in the 2022 competition, some national team players have already caught up in their respective levels. Zhang Mengyu, Zuo Ju, Meng Mingkuan, Song Zhaoxiang, etc. have all reached the top 20 positions.
Whether they can go further in the standings depends on their performance in the 2023 season.
Guan Jianmin listed the key events that the national team will participate in this year. In addition to the three World Taekwondo Grand Prix and one final, the World Championships will also be held in Baku, Azerbaijan from the end of May to the beginning of June. Generate a lot of Olympic points.
In addition, this year there will be two World Taekwondo Grand Slam events in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province. The first place in the Grand Slam events will also get a ticket for the Paris Olympics.
Therefore, in 2023, there are a total of 7 important events waiting for the members of the national taekwondo team to launch an impact.
"The time left for us is very short, and we hope to reach a higher level in 2023. The Chinese Taekwondo team will go all out." Guan Jianmin said.
"People's Daily Overseas Edition" January 18, 2023, Page 09