China News Service, Beijing, April 7 (Reporter Hao Lingyu) On the 6th, Zhang Xiaohuan, head coach of the Chinese synchronized swimming team, said in an interview with the media after the collective free selection competition of the Synchronized Swimming World Cup Beijing Station that although the Chinese synchronized swimming team has achieved good results, , but looking at the Paris Olympics, the Chinese team still has a long way to go.
At the World Swimming Championships in Doha that ended earlier this year, the Chinese synchronized swimming team created the best results in the history of the World Championships with 7 gold medals, 1 silver and 1 bronze, occupying the top spot in the synchronized swimming medal list at the current World Championships. In the ongoing World Cup in Beijing, the Chinese team, which features teenagers in many events, is temporarily in the lead with 6 gold medals and 1 silver.
Zhang Xiaohuan said that as a head coach, he can feel the excitement of athletes playing at home, but they also bear a lot of pressure. "Especially before the competition, the rules of flower games have been modified again. Some moves that were done at the Doha World Championships will never appear again now. This change also brings challenges to the team."
Zhang Xiaohuan believes that the Chinese team has many competitors, and each strong team is trying to adapt to the changes in the rules of flower games, and a stable strength pattern has not yet been formed. "The Chinese team currently has a strong sense of crisis. We have chasing troops behind us, and we must set a higher standard for ourselves."
Zhang Xiaohuan's long-held wish is to have "China's beauty" recognized by the world through synchronized swimming. She believes that the current project rules limit the difficulty of the movements and at the same time refine the judging criteria for the artistic impression part. The Chinese team needs to re-examine whether the combination and connection of actions are original. It is foreseeable that referees' penalties will become more stringent in the future.
"Now the China Flower Tour Team is still a certain distance away from the recognition I want to get, and we have to continue to work hard." Zhang Xiaohuan said. (over)