Zhou Guanyu
By Yangcheng Evening News - Hao Hao Yu
The sports world has also been hard hit by the new coronavirus that has ravaged the world. Major events such as the Olympics have been postponed or canceled, causing many inconveniences for Chinese athletes traveling overseas. Despite the volatility of the epidemic, the world's sporting events have not stopped, and Chinese athletes have demonstrated their resilience in the face of risk and challenge.
Some have won gold medals, some have pursued their dreams with determination, and some have achieved mediocre results. However, at a time when the shadow of the epidemic has not yet lifted, their hard work in training and competition, and their heroic performance on the international stage in national flag garb, deserve our heartfelt respect.
Closed training, national soccer team faces challenges
The list of the top 32 of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar was unveiled, and the Chinese men's football team once again missed out on the final round.During the 12-team tournament, the national football team won 1, drew 3, drew 6 and lost 6 points, attracting widespread criticism from public opinion. The performance of the national football team is indeed unsatisfactory, but considering the isolation difficulties of competing abroad, the whole team of the national football team is actually under tremendous pressure.
Since January 2021, the international players have begun a long period of isolation training and games. The national football team's 12-stage tournament lasted until the end of March 2022, and after returning home, the international players still need to go through a "14+7" isolation period. In the past year, including the national team training games and the league closed concentration time, the national football players closed life up to 300 days, basically in the field and the hotel two point one line state. Although the national football team to protect the team rented a comfortable environment of the hotel, but such a closed life will undoubtedly affect the state of the athletes.
In addition, there is no fixed home field on the national football team's performance has caused a small negative impact. Throughout the 12 stages of the tournament, the national football team will be "home" in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, and there are no fans on site to support during the game. In the case of the other five teams in the same group who have their own home field, the national football team is in a clear disadvantageous position.
Undeniably, the performance of the national football team in the 12 strong match is indeed unsatisfactory, but in the case of relatively weak strength, and lost the home advantage, coupled with the national football team for a long time in the centralized isolation of the high-pressure state, the national football team in the 12 strong match failure is also reasonable.
Going global, professional sports gaining momentum
While participating in international tournaments, many athletes traveled overseas in their personal capacity during the epidemic to seek high-level training with a view to improving their performance. For sports that are more professionalized and better developed internationally, such as tennis, combat and Formula 1, going abroad is a must for Chinese athletes.
Zheng Qinwen, the current first sister of Chinese women's tennis, is a typical representative of this. She advanced to the round of 16 in the just-concluded French Open and then won the title at the WTA Valencia, and her achievements are inseparable from her hard work.
In 2020, when the epidemic ravaged the world and China was relatively safe, 19-year-old Zheng Qinwen resolutely embarked on the journey to train abroad. For the past two years, Zheng Qinwen has been training for a long time in Barcelona, Spain, where she has been given more matches and growth opportunities than domestic players. During a crucial growth phase, Zheng Qinwen gave up a safe environment in exchange for the opportunity to become a top tennis player.
There are many others, like Cheng Chin Man, who bravely stepped out of the country at a special time ......
Diving, gymnastics, weightlifting and other sports are our strengths and have good training conditions at home, but for more professionalized sports, it is necessary to go abroad in order to achieve results. Going abroad for training and competition will certainly be plagued by epidemics, but athletes can also get a training environment and higher attention that cannot be compared to domestic. China's sports need such athletes, who, while making achievements or progress, will also promote the overall development of Chinese sports.
Teams brave Paris Olympic cycle
In recent months, more and more international events have resumed, posing a new test for Chinese athletes to compete.
Next, the World Swimming Championships, the Men's Basketball Asia Cup, and the Triple Basketball U21 World League will follow, and the Chinese army will form a team for the tournament. The Chinese team will continue to pursue good results, but will also face the pressure of epidemic prevention and control, the athletes need to experience more tests.
At the Women's Basketball World Cup qualifier in Belgrade, Serbia, in February, the Chinese women's basketball team won three consecutive victories and advanced to the World Cup with their heads held high. However, on the eve of returning to China, a positive case was detected in the visiting team of the women's basketball team, which triggered the concern of domestic fans. However, the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) made plans in advance and reacted quickly.
After the case was diagnosed, the Chinese Basketball Association contacted our Embassy in Serbia at the first time to request assistance. With the efforts of the Embassy, Serbia opened a green channel for the Chinese women's basketball team to seek medical treatment. In addition, the Basketball Association organized a team of domestic experts to remotely diagnose the women's basketball girls and give them professional guidance.On March 12, the Chinese women's basketball team departed for home after a hard time.
The Chinese badminton team had a similar experience. 2022, the start of the new Olympic cycle, the full resumption of the World Badminton Federation tournaments. In order to enhance the experience of young players and compete for world ranking points, the national badminton team traveled to Europe in early March. According to the plan, the national badminton will roll around the world to compete, and set up a training camp in Chiang Mai, Thailand. This is the first time in the history of the national badminton long time outside training, but also the association and the team in a special period of a new exploration.
Last year, after the Tokyo Olympics and Shaanxi National Games, the national badminton then went to Europe to participate in a number of competitions, after returning home according to the regulations of the isolation of 21 days before "out of the gate" to prepare for the World Championships, and therefore missed the three stops held in Bali, Indonesia, which has had a certain impact on the athletes' state of play.
Now that the Paris Olympic cycle has begun, a large number of newcomers and new combinations in the team urgently need to compete to earn points. Under the premise of complying with the national epidemic prevention regulations, the national badminton team needs to develop a new mode of competition and training from the perspective of preparing for the Paris Olympics. The Chinese Badminton Association decided to set up a training camp in Chiang Mai as a transit point for the team to compete in international tournaments in the next six months. After the All England Open, some players tested positive for the new crown, the national badminton team quickly started the relevant plan to provide full support and protection for the team from the medical, psychological and life aspects.
