China's women's soccer team recently unveiled a 22-player lineup for the Tokyo Olympics, in which Guangdong player Chen Qiaozhu replaced Jiangsu player Jin Kun at the last minute, increasing the number of Guangdong players in the team to four, equaling the record of four Guangdong players at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
From the splendor of the 1990s to the mediocrity of the last decade to the strong return of the Guangdong women's soccer team today, the journey has been filled with the hard work and sweat of countless people.
Chen Qiaozhu (center) was elected on a whistle-stop basis
Glory, Doldrums and Revival
Guangdong Women's Football has sent many famous players to China Women's Football, especially in the 90s, the names of Wei Haiying, Shi Guihong, Gao Hong, Zhao Lihong, Wu Weiying, Chen Xia and Qiu Haiyan are household names, they are an important part of the Clanging Roses, and the first four of them were selected for both the 1995 Women's Football World Cup and the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.
However, with the retirement of this group of players, Guangdong women's football team in a period of time, it is difficult to batch again "star-making". 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Guangdong women's football team no player selected for the Olympic roster; 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Guangdong only one player Xie Caixia and Tan Ruyin selected respectively (2012) China's women's soccer team did not qualify for the London Olympics).
Guangdong star Zhao Lihong with the ball in the 1999 Women's World Cup Final
During this period, the Guangdong women's soccer team did not reach the top eight of the National League in the 2014 season and has not been in the Women's Super League since 2015, reflecting the downturn of the Guangdong women's soccer team during that period. This time, at the Tokyo Olympics, Guangdong has once again had four Guangdong players selected after 25 years, the number accounting for nearly one-fifth of China's women's soccer team's roster for the tournament, which is a proof of the strong return of Guangdong women's soccer team, as well as encouraging good news.
Among the "Four Golden Flowers", Luo Guiping, Lin Yuping and Chen Qiaozhu are from Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province, and were trained in Zhanjiang City Sports School. Li Qingtong, on the other hand, is a Guangzhou-based player. Lin Yuping made her national team debut at the Women's Asian Cup in 2018, and has represented China at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, the 2019 Women's World Cup in France, and this time at the Tokyo Olympics qualifiers.
Luo Guiping also began playing for the national team in 2018 and was elected "Miss Guangdong Football" in 2019. She played 210 minutes in the two-legged Olympic qualifier between China and South Korea. Chen Qiaozhu, who missed the 2019 World Cup due to injury, returned to the national team in 2020 through surgery and was named to the roster for the two-legged match between China and South Korea.
These three are all playing defender, Guangdong women's football head coach He Weiwen said in his review of the love, Lin Yuping, strong aerial ability, Luo Guiping is outstanding physical quality and talent, speed, scrambling and active; a little younger players, Chen Qiaozhu speed, not only strong defensive ability, but also involved in the assists; Li Chingtong play the position of the back, a wide range of defense, and in the center of the mid-field attack is also very distinctive.
In fact, in addition to the bright players in the midfield and backfield, Guangdong women's soccer team also has good players in the offensive end, such as the front line player Xie Qiwen has been selected for the national team in the past few years, but suffered from injuries are not involved in the current Olympic Games.
The Power Behind Revitalization
Guangdong women's football has been revitalized, first of all, the association's attention and policy inclination.
At the end of 2015, the Guangdong Provincial Football Association carried out a change of reform, to revitalize the Guangdong women's football focus into the work plan, in all aspects of increased investment, the Governor's Cup, provincial championships, the provincial Games and other tournaments to increase the number of technical analysis, scientific research to ensure that the investment is also a significant increase in the number of people involved in women's football in Guangdong Province continues to increase, which in turn, let the women's football reserve force to further expand.
Over the years, the Women's Super League has been supported by social forces and has been the driving force behind the sustainable development of Guangdong Women's Football. Over the years, Guangdong Haiyin, Zhuhai Soka, Meizhou Huijun and Meizhou Hakka have participated in the construction of the Guangdong Women's Football League.
In these two years by the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the national investment environment is not too good, the Women's Super League also has a lot of sponsors to withdraw their funds, but Guangdong Women's Football has been fortunate enough to get the support of sponsors, so that the club has continued the benign development, but also for the Guangdong Women's Football players to provide a better platform for the display of the platform and the opportunity to develop.
The 13th National Games in 2017, Guangdong women's football youth team won the runner-up in the u18 group, first blew the horn of the rise of Guangdong women's football, that session of the team members include Chen Qiaozhu and Li Qingtong, who were selected for the Tokyo roster this time.
Lee Moo-Tong (right) receives the ball during the Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament Asian Zone Play-off match against South Korea
In the 2019 season, Guangdong women's soccer even returned to the Women's Super League through three seasons of hard work. And this year's 14th National Games, Zhanjiang Chikan Women's Football Team, representing Guangdong, won the Mass Group Futsal Women's Group B Championship, also highlighting that through five or six years of reform and cultivation, Guangdong's grassroots women's football team has likewise developed and taken off.
In addition to the promotion of public sports and competitive sports level, women's soccer girls retired after the way out and security issues also get the Guangdong Football Association side of the attention. Won the 2017 National Games u18 group runners-up, those players, while preparing for the National Games while preparing for the college entrance examination, and even with books to the "outpost", and finally most of them went to college.
In addition with the national level vigorously promote school soccer in the past few years, creating more jobs, Guangdong women's football players retired from work path to expand, less worries, the number of people involved in the women's football team has been enhanced, but also help the benign development of the sport. (For more news and information, please pay attention to Yangcheng Pai pai.ycwb.com)
