On August 12, China's women's soccer star Wang Frost, who is embarking on her third trip to study abroad, posted a heartwarming video on her social media platform. In the video, she shared a small episode during her training in Qingdao before the East Asian Cup: she sent her blessings to more than 60 "wind chasing girls" who were about to graduate from elementary school.
The "wind chasing girls" referred to by Wang Frost come from a village school women's soccer support program called the "wind chasing program". The program was launched by the Zhejiang Ant Public Welfare Foundation together with a number of partners in July 2019, with the goal of supporting 100 village elementary school girls' soccer teams over the next five years, helping more rural girls build confidence, enjoy happiness and seize more opportunities for education and development through soccer.
Dong Mengnan of Yuanbao Primary School in Dafang County, Guizhou Province, practicing tackling. Over the past three years, the "Wind Chaser Program" has directly supported 60 village elementary school girls' soccer teams in 23 provinces, cities, autonomous regions and municipalities, and has benefited 200 rural schools. In addition to financial support, over the past three years, the Wind Chaser Program has also donated 6,532 sets of jerseys, 2,735 pairs of shoes, and 260 sets of soccer training equipment to the 260 village school girls' soccer teams, so that the girls can get better professional protection during training. "In the past, we did not have gloves when we pounced on the ball, 'now the equipment are not lacking, there are gloves and pads, training to pounce on the ball is no longer afraid of pain.'" Dong Mengnan, the main goalkeeper of Yuanbao Primary School in Dafang County, Guizhou Province, said in an interview. Former Chinese women's soccer coach Ma Liangxing is instructing the coaches of the Wind Chaser Program. In addition to the improvement of hardware conditions, the training of the coaching staff is also an important part of the support of the Wind Chaser Program. In August 2020, 120 rural grass-roots soccer coaches received a five-day training in Qiongzhong, Hainan, and former China's women's soccer coach Ma Liangxing and former China's women's soccer player Gao Hong are also "chasing the wind mentor" identity, for these special trainees to teach professional and scientific training methods. Last October was a glorious moment for the "Wind Chasing Girls". Wang Jiayue, a player from Yuanbao Primary School, one of the first schools selected for the Wind Chaser Program, appeared on the big screen at the San Siro Stadium in Milan, Italy.
The story of Wang Jiayue, the "wind chaser" from Bijie, Guizhou Province, was seen by fans around the world at the UEFA Nations League final. For helping her team win the Southwest Region of the Wind Chaser League in May and being awarded the best player, Wang Jiayue held the same trophy as Euro 2020's top scorer, C Luo, and her story of getting out of the mountains because of soccer was seen by fans all over the world at the UEFA Europa League final. Wang Jiayue and four other teammates from Yuanbao Primary School were selected by the Guangzhou Municipal Football Association to receive more professional training in Guangzhou, where they will complete their elementary school and university education. Like Wang Jiayue, there are many other "wind chasing girls" who have gained more opportunities in life through soccer. According to the Ant Public Welfare Foundation, over the past three years, the "Wind Chaser Program" has helped 4,129 village soccer girls, and among the 783 girls who have completed the program, 119 have been enrolled in better soccer schools. Of the 783 girls who have completed the program, 119 have been admitted to better junior high schools, and 30 have been admitted to sports schools, youth training centers or soccer schools to receive professional soccer training.
