"Regardless of whether the children will follow the path of professional players, their love for soccer, their understanding of sportsmanship, and the change in their destiny will be passed on to the next generation. The hope of the players will fall like seeds on the earth, and the whole region will develop better and better, which is the real 'will and wisdom'."
▲July 8, Guizhou Province Qianxinan Youth Football Team and Beijing
national security
Soccer club players pose for a group photo. By Wang Fei, New Beijing News
"Go to Beijing to play soccer." Xu Jiajia has fulfilled one of her dreams.
July 8, Beijing Worker's Stadium, like many of the "famous footballers" who play here, Xu Jiajia and a group of young teammates whose photos were hung in the players' locker room. On this day, the U13 youth soccer team from Qianxinan Prefecture, Guizhou Province, played against the Beijing
national security
U12 ladder mixed match.
Four years ago, Xu Jiajia entered Luguan Primary School in Xingren City, which has more than 1,200 students, from a rural school in Qianxinan Prefecture, Guizhou Province, with the help of poverty-alleviation cadres. There, she met the police who came to Beijing to teach her, joined the soccer team, got good grades, and was promoted to a key middle school in Qianxinan Prefecture under the guidance of a "police coach". Last week, she flew to Beijing for the first time and kicked a soccer ball into the Beijing Workers' Stadium.
▲Guizhou 34 youth players to the industrial stadium to play football players: very happy to practice hard to fight to come back. New Beijing News we video production (ID: wevideo)
This is the story of an ordinary girl from a mountain village who fulfills her dream, but behind it, it is the story of a group of people who help another group of people to ignite hope.
In March 2021 and September 2022, the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau sent two batches of 40 police officers with professional expertise to Xingren City and Pu'an County in Qianxinan Prefecture, Guizhou Province, to carry out three-year soccer and English teaching. Among them, the two batches of 24 soccer coaching police (4 of them stayed on) continued to promote and popularize school soccer, set up a total of 22 school soccer teams, and repeatedly led the school soccer teams to achieve excellent results in competitions held in the country, Guizhou Province and their counties and cities.
Under the planning and promotion of the coaching team, the government of Qianxinan Prefecture has set up a youth soccer training base in the capital city of Xingyi, and established a "full chain" promotion channel of "primary school-middle school-high school-university-employment" for outstanding soccer talents in Qianxinan Prefecture.
Thirteen-year-old Xu Jiajia has a bigger dream, "to get out of the mountains and go to a better place to study." The teaching police planted a seed in the children's hearts.
▲"I've finally grown up!" Guizhou's 34 youth players watched for the first time at the Workers' Stadium
China Super League (soccer league)
League. NKJV We Video Productions (ID: wevideo)
"Going to play soccer in Beijing."
In June in Guizhou, bee sugar plums are in season, plum tree branches and leaves are pressed by the fruit, the wind blows, with the rustling sound of light swing.
"Going to play soccer in Beijing." The children's cheers came from afar. Xu Jiajia, who has short, sharp hair and a tanned face, ran home, followed by two "police coaches" from Beijing.
The small courtyard was instantly bustling with activity. Mother Lin Yifan rubbed her hands in a formal manner, her feet were busy, one moment to bring the washed plums, another moment to go to the chicken nest to touch the eggs, pick off the beams on the bacon, and then into the kitchen to work; father Xu Shenggui to the two coaches even compared with a picture with a word, his accent heavy, fast speech, repeatedly said, "Jia Jia let you bother."
This year's 13-year-old Xu Jiajia, is the only child in the village to go to Xingyi City, the capital of Qianxi'nan Prefecture, to read the public junior high school, with good grades, but also selected in Guizhou Province, Qianxi'nan Prefecture, U13 girls' soccer team, is about to participate in the youth soccer summer camp in Beijing. But more than two years ago, she often skipped classes, is the same age of the children in the "big sister", but also let the teacher headache of the "problem students".
During those days when she felt ashamed and regretful when she thought back, Jia Jia met Song Xiaochuan, a police officer who came to support her. He was like a ray of light that shone into Jia Jia's life.
▲2021, children who have just been selected for the soccer team are training, pictured in front is Xu Jiajia. Photo courtesy of the interviewee
On March 18, 2021, the first batch of 18 teaching police from Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau went to six schools (three elementary school and three junior and senior high schools) in Xingren City and Pu'an County of Qianxinan Prefecture, and started the work of targeted support and teaching. Song Xiaochuan and his partner set up a soccer team at Luguan Primary School in Xingren City.
Song Xiaochuan realized that Jia Jia was a good seed. The fifth-grader was fast, fit, smart and understanding, and not only made the team, but was also selected as captain.
Since then more than a year, this group of "at first even do not know what soccer" children, day after day in the training field sweating, little by little learned to pass, dribbling, shooting ...... They represent the Lu Guan Primary School to participate in the Xingren City School Soccer League, repeatedly won the championship! Champion.
Xu Jiajia was selected for the Qianxinan training team, and with her were 15 male and 11 female members brought up by the police in support of the education, who could go to Xingyi, the capital of Qianxinan, to attend junior high school.
The opportunity was right in front of us, but Jiajia's father was in trouble. When he received his daughter's phone call, Xu Shenggui blindfolded, he is doing work in the rubber factory in Taizhou, Zhejiang, he needs to do a good job of accounting.
The Xu family had five children, Jiajia being the youngest, and including her, three children were studying at the time. Studying needs money, his wife Lin Yifan has liver disease, see a doctor needs money, a family of seven rely on farming, pig farming and Xu Shenggui odd jobs to maintain life. And to go to Xingyi City to study, another monthly expenditure.
▲ On July 1, Xu Jiajia's mother Lin Yifan (first from right) was all smiles as she talked about Jiajia's trip to Beijing. The new Beijing News reporter He Junyi photo
Without hesitating for too long, Xu Shenggui quickly called Jiajia back, "Go, the family is even more difficult to survive." In this ordinary farming family deep in the mountains, studying is the top priority. Xu Shenggui has always regretted that he could not go to junior high school because he could not afford to pay the 90 yuan tuition fee, and he felt sorry for his eldest daughter, who went to college but gave up and chose to work.
Xu Jiajia is very lucky, she met a lot of "noble people" on the way to school. When she was in third grade, the village poverty alleviation cadres and Xu Shenggui proposed to send Jiajia and her brother to study in Xingren City, and helped them contact the school. It was only then that the siblings entered the city, and Jia Jia also had the opportunity to become a student of Song Xiaochuan.
"Go to a better place to study." It is the hope of this family's children to get out of the mountains. Jiajia has gone farther and farther, and can go to Beijing, where she longs to play soccer. Her parents are not at ease, and one by one urge her, "Listen to the coach, and don't get hurt during the game."
▲ On July 5, Xu Jiajia embraced and cheered with her teammates after scoring a goal in a friendly match between Guizhou Province's Qianxinan youth soccer team and Beijing's youth team. The new Beijing News reporter Wang Ying photographed
"Show them the outside world."
More than two years of coaching, the "police coach" from Beijing in their respective schools to help, from scratch to build a soccer team, but also harvested a good record.
The police promoted the establishment of a soccer association in Pu'an County, realizing the goal of having a soccer association in the entire state of Qianxi South. Xingren Phoenix Middle School established the first high school girls' state-level team in Qianxi South Prefecture, and in the 11th Guizhou Provincial Games held in August 2022, it achieved the sixth place in the girls' Group A, which is the best result achieved by Qianxi South Prefecture since the restoration of the Provincial Games in Guizhou Province.2022 In the Midwest Youth Football Invitational Tournament, the men's and women's two U12 soccer teams led by the police officers of the support team won all the four matches, and stood out among the 20 participating teams from nine provinces, winning the superior prize. 20 teams from 9 provinces stood out and won the merit award ......
▲Wang Gang and Zhang Jinan led the Phoenix Middle School girls' soccer team to represent Qianxinan State in the competition.
In the beginning, it is difficult to find a few children in the school who have been exposed to soccer, the brand new playground, the new turf standard soccer field, shiny metal goals, in the eyes of the children are just a place to run, climbing tools.
In order to pull up the first high school women's state team in Qianxi South Guizhou, support police Wang Gang and colleagues drove a place a place to find people, cumulative total of more than 5,000 kilometers of mountain roads, and finally in Xingyi, Xingren, Anlong, Zhenfeng, Wangmu and other counties (cities) selected 28 junior high school graduates, arranging for them to go to the Phoenix Middle School to study and intensive training.
Most of these children do not excel in their studies, and their families are in difficult conditions, with many siblings and parents who work outside the home all year round, even as some of them have taken on the burden of raising younger siblings. Belomé was one of them, and when she was selected, her family did not approve of her playing soccer.
"What's the use of playing soccer?" The police have been questioned this way at one time or another. They patiently explained, "There are many different paths in life, and soccer may open a window for the children." When they have time, they also visit homes to persuade parents who have concerns. With the joint efforts of the coaches and the staff of the Wangmu County Government and Education Bureau, Belomé finally showed up at the training ground.
▲Wang Gang on the training ground, demanding and meticulous.
As a teacher, it is a big challenge for the police. In Pu'an County Longxi Shiyan school teaching police Cai Shuo has a "headache" students, called Chen Jinfang, the girl's physical fitness, explosive, is an all-around player, is too introverted and shy.
For a long time, Jinfang never looked up during training, did not speak, did not respond to the coach. Cai Shuo anxious to ask a few questions, she cried, less than thirty years old Cai Shuo face such a half-grown child helpless.
▲2021 When he first arrived at Longxi Shiyan School in Pu'an County, Cai Shuo was instructing the children in training
A year and a half later, Cai Shuo learned about her mental state at the time in a letter Chen Jinfang wrote to him, "Knowing nothing about soccer, I didn't know how to play, how to stop the ball, how to defend, as if a baby was facing a fresh world ......"
In this new world of soccer, coaches teach children the rules and skills of soccer hand-in-hand, taking them into a wider world.
Wang Gang and his colleagues try to find ways to "make money" for the children to pull clothing, soccer balls, backpacks and other funding, stewed beef and chicken legs on weekends to give them extra meals, but also out of their own pockets to raise funds for transportation, food and lodging and other expenses when they go out to play. "To take them to see the outside world."
"I can!"
Soccer training is a chore, the ultimate pull of the body and perseverance in exchange for progress.
Every time she trains, Xu Jiajia runs around the field with all her might. "She dares to go against and grab", Song Xiaochuan said, which is Jiajia's strength.
▲In anticipation of the friendly match at the July 4 summer camp in Beijing, Xu Jiajia (right) and her teammates have stepped up their training. New Beijing News reporter He Junyi photo
She also has the strength to not give up. Just after entering junior high school, Jiajia underwent two surgeries for gastroenteritis and appendicitis, and fell behind in her training and studies. The former captain of Lu Guan Elementary School was no longer visible in the state team, which was full of experts. Serving as the team's physical fitness coach and life coach, Shi Miao could see that Jia Jia was a bit demoralized, but still trying to catch up.
June 29, to Beijing to participate in youth soccer camp on the eve of a training, Jiajia launched a low fever, red face sweating, but she is still not willing to take leave, "I can not delay." After gritting her teeth for two hours, she nearly fainted when her strength ran out during the final stage of the training program. Shi Miao forced her to rest and sit on the sidelines to drink water to cool down, Jia Jia gasped and watched her teammates train, her brows knitted tight.
Xu Jiajia has said that since joining the soccer team, life has taken on a more concrete run, "to fight and to win."
▲ Every time the training down, Wang Gang often hoarse voice, exhausted. The new Beijing News reporter He Junyi photo
But "winning" is not the only thing that the coaches want to pass on to the kids. In addition, there is confidence, perseverance and faith.
No team is a sure winner, especially for a newly formed team, losing is inevitable. The falls and losses are treated by Belomé as a hurdle on the road to success, and they will always improve when they get up and cross over.
In your state in 2021
soccer league
In the Cup Youth Soccer League, the Phoenix Middle School girls' soccer team finished in 8th place, with 7 players getting the National Level 2 Athletes' quota, including Belomé, which is a huge boost for her to get into a sports professional college in the future.
After Chen Jinfang was selected to be the goalkeeper of the Qianxinan state team, he was like a different person. It was then that Cai Shuo determined that Jinfang's past behavior stemmed from a lack of self-confidence. "Until she participated in the state selection, she realized that she was still the best, and she really never cried again. In the past, she saw me go around, and now she dares to 'provoke' me, 'Coach, you can't run, not as fast as me.'"
▲ In the summer of 2022, Chen Jinfang (back row, 3rd from right) was selected to join the Qianxinan Girls U12 training team, and the players took a photo with coach Tang Yongxin. Interviewee for photo
The crying little girl on the soccer field is gone. Chen Jinfang is very hardworking in her training, which she attributes to her childhood exercise. She has three sisters and one brother, the little brother was born without speech, his parents took him everywhere to seek medical attention, the young Chen Jinfang every day to walk alone more than an hour of mountain road to school, from dawn to dawn. Since third grade, she has been going home to do laundry and cooking, feeding pigs and chickens.
In the past, Xu Jiajia would cry a lot when she cut off her shoulder-length hair, but now, she cut her short, ear-length hair hard and again to make it easier to run, leaving her ears and forehead exposed.
"I can turn the ball over more than 500 times in a row." "I got 7th place in my class in this exam." Xu Jiajia kept reporting her good news to Song Xiaochuan. "When she first started training, she couldn't turn over a single ball, and it took her a long time to practice three or five in a row." Song Xiaochuan didn't ask Jiajia how exactly she had worked hard to reach this level, and Jiajia wouldn't pull him around to complain about her pain and tiredness.
"Look, I can do it!" The kids proved themselves with solid results.
The baton of dreams
In July 2022, 14 of the 18 police officers from the first batch returned to Beijing at the end of their teaching stint. Song Xiaochuan also left, and before he left he handed Xu Jiajia over to Wang Gang and Wang Haonan, who stayed on, as well as Shi Miao and Tong Jixiang, who came to teach in the second batch.
The coach is picking up the baton, but the training does not stop. Wang Gang on the soccer field, is a "tough role". He said no matter what, six o'clock in the morning to start training, thunder and lightning, winter rain into ice, summer humidity and sultry, but he insisted that "late must be punished", the girls screamed bitterly tired will attract more stringent requirements, he seems to be on their performance is never satisfied.
▲ Every morning at 6 a.m., when the sky is still dark, the girls are already on the playground of Xingyi No. 5 Middle School. The new Beijing News reporter He Junyi photo
In Chen Jinfang's eyes, her initiation coach Cai Shuo belongs to the "silent" type, "big king" coach Wang Gang is like a strict "old father", "small king" coach Wang Haonan does not talk much but understands her, and always says a word into her heart at the critical time. The "little king" coach Wang Hao Nan does not talk much but understands her, always in the key time a sentence into her heart ...... she set the coaches funny group photo into their own cell phone screen saver.
"Old fathers" care, many are in the children can not see the place. In private, Wang Gang told everyone about the children's difficulties, "very young to learn to do the laundry and cooking, no parents to take care of, home conditions are not good, nutrition can not keep up with, you see this calf muscles, go out and others a lot of difference it."
After leaving Qianxinan, Song Xiaochuan was entrusted by his friend to deposit 300 yuan in Wang Gang's place every month as a subsidy for Jiajia's living expenses. He repeatedly urged Jiajia, "You just don't worry, study hard, don't fall behind in soccer and culture classes."
Jia Jia couldn't let go of him, watching the video Song Xiaochuan made when he left at the end of his coaching, in which every frame was a memory of the past training and competitions together, she buried her head and cried bitterly, and made a promise with her coach, "I'm going to Beijing to go to college, we'll see you in Beijing then."
▲Teaching police and Guizhou youth players to meet again Take out a special gift to surprise the players. New Beijing News we video production (ID: wevideo)
I didn't expect the meeting to come so quickly. on July 6, just after the friendly match with the Beijing team, Xu Jiajia saw the coaches hiding outside the field who wanted to give them a surprise. She rushed to Song Xiaochuan and asked him in a chorus, "Did you see that we won the game?"
▲Song Xiaochuan (left), Tang Yongxin (center) and Zhang Jinan nervously watch their children play outside the stadium on July 6 in Beijing. By Zhang Jingshu, New Beijing News
Song Xiaochuan usually do not talk much, not like the children to express their emotions so warmly, but he will still be for such a moment "break defense". He looked at the child in front of him, who had not seen him for a year and was eager to "claim credit", and saw that she had grown taller and made progress, and his heart was immensely comforted.
On the title page of the English book given to Xu Jiajia, Song Xiaochuan wrote this sentence, "I hope you will hold on to your dreams and use your efforts to realize our agreement. See you in Beijing in the future!"
He knows that the seeds of hope have been sown, and these seedlings are tenaciously drawing nourishment and working their way up.
From March 2021 to the present, under the relay help of two batches of teaching police of Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, and with the strong support of Guizhou Province as well as sports education and public security departments of Qianxinan Prefecture, 2 players have been rated as national level athletes, 38 players have been rated as national level 2 athletes, 6 players have been selected to Guizhou Province Youth Training Team and attended Guiyang Experimental School, and 45 players have been selected to Qianxinan Prefecture Youth Training Team and attended Xingyi Fifth Middle School.
The children's dreams took on a more concrete shape. Cai Shuo's student told him, "Coach, my life was never this exciting before you guys came, I want to go to college, be a cop, and coach soccer like you."
Tong Jixiang, a young missionary police officer, remembers that when he first arrived, he asked the children what their dreams were, and one girl said, "I want to open a kiosk in our village." A year later, her dream became - "I want to go to military school and be a soldier."
▲July 10, near the end of the summer camp, the children watched the flag-raising ceremony in Tiananmen Square. After the ceremony, a girl opens her arms to greet the rising sun. New Beijing News reporter Wang Jianing photo
In the interview, Chen Jinfang end a doll face like a small adult said, "I'm so lucky, don't you think it's fate being changed?"
I don't want to let go of the opportunity to grab it. In school, every day early morning training, vacation home, the same does not slack. At 5:30 in the morning, Chen Jinfang got up on time and ran around the village mountain road for half an hour, rain or shine. "I have a dream, it's my own thing."
"What is your dream?"
"Enter
national soccer team
." Chen Jinfang blurted out.
Soccer is like a beam of light that illuminates the children's path ahead. Wang Gang said he is willing to be that leader, "Whether the children will take the path of professional players or not, their love for soccer, their understanding of sportsmanship, and the change of their own destiny will be passed on to the next generation. The hope of the players will fall like seeds on the earth, and the whole region will develop better and better, which is the real 'will and wisdom'."
