halterofilia
Originally uploaded by Beijing 2008 Info
Meet Chen Xiexia, the first from Team China to win a gold medal for the country. Small, mighty and adorable with a great smile, she is the perfect poster girl for China’s Olympic achievements thus far.
Then there’s Du Li, the 10m air-rifle shooter and Athens gold medalist. Expected to have a repeat performance, she was smothered by pressure from her country and its media, which was obsessed with Du winning the Games’ first gold. In the first round, Du shot poorly and finished fifth.
In an interview I saw on TV a few days ago, she was in tears, sobbing as if she lost everything. “I wasn’t fully prepared for the pressure of competing at home,” she said.
I can’t imagine what these two women have been going through. 1.3 billion people relying on you to perform. To compete at your best under pressure, and to win and represent your country’s move back to the stage of great powers. It’s been a long journey for China to be where it is today, and the same goes for each individual athlete competing for Team China this year.
