On April 8, China Central Radio and Television announced the results of the "Person of the Year that Touched China in 2023". Swimming star Zhang Yufei was awarded the "Person of the Year that Touched China in 2023". The award speech given to her by
reads: "I would rather burn my muscles in the middle of the night than let my emotions sink in failure. Nezha is to be reborn; Queen Butterfly must be the Queen of Butterfly. Explore the limits of sports and harvest the beauty of youth Gold medal, a champion is a winner, and he is a person who rises from adversity.
Zhang Yufei (Source: Modern Express)
Later, Zhang Yufei posted on social media: "A champion is a winner, and he is a person who rises from adversity. This honor is a great honor. Thank you all for your blessings, and I am even more grateful for the touch that sports and the arena have brought to me. I also hope that I can continue to pass on this touch. The warm water and beautiful flowers in Asia, see you in Paris!
A "model worker" who competes four times a day
For Zhang Yufei, the past 2023 has been a year of harvest and breakthrough, but it has also been a hard year.
As a leader in the Chinese swimming world, Zhang Yufei has worn many hats many times. She won gold and silver in international competitions, showing the world the strength and level of Chinese swimming. She was also called a "model worker" and "special soldier" by netizens and fans.
Zhang Yufei is competing (Source: Xinhua News Agency). In terms of
data, Zhang Yufei participated in 59 competitions in the international arena throughout 2023, winning 23 golds, 4 silvers and 2 bronzes, and won the crown at the World Cup in Budapest.
In July 2023, at the Fukuoka World Championships, Zhang Yufei played 6 minors. In order to challenge for the men's and women's 4x100m mixed relay championship with her teammates, Zhang Yufei gave up her main event of 200m butterfly and finally won this historic mixed relay gold medal for the Chinese swimming team. .
In August 2023, at the Chengdu Universiade, Zhang Yufei had up to four competitions in one day, but she still won all 9 events she participated in, becoming the swimmer with the most gold medals in the competition.
In September 2023, at the Hangzhou Asian Games, Zhang Yufei continued to maintain excellent competitive status despite being ill, winning 6 gold medals and breaking competition records in individual events many times. Not only that, she was also awarded the Most Valuable Athlete (mvp) at the Hangzhou Asian Games with her teammate Qin Haiyang. ).
After the World Cup, Zhang Yufei won successively in Berlin, Athens and Budapest, ranking third in the World Cup annual standings with 6 gold medals and 3 silver medals.
Game after game. Zhang Yufei won the title of "Model Worker". In response, Zhang Yufei once said that she usually uses a lot of training to improve her physical fitness and improve her ability to "shoot multiple shots." "I am very powerful and muscular, so This is also why I can 'shoot multiple shots'. Although I am very sleepy, I must wake up when I stand on the field. No matter what my state is today, I must go all out and take this game seriously. "
Zhang Yufei won the World Cup Budapest crown (Source: Xinhua News Agency)
She was in a trough, but she never gave up
The road to becoming a butterfly queen in swimming was not smooth sailing. In the 2016 Rio Olympics, 18-year-old Zhang Yufei made her debut. On the Olympic stage, she finally performed abnormally due to nervousness and ranked sixth.
After the game, Zhang Yufei said: "When I was at the check-in office, I felt that my limbs were frozen and my whole body was 'petrified'. This is how I ended up." 'Petrified' state, finished the game. "
Shortly after returning from Rio, Zhang Yufei began to train with coach Cui Dengrong. Half a year later, her 200-meter butterfly performance did not improve but regressed. Many people questioned: The performance has declined, why not change the coach?
It is satisfying Unexpectedly, during this process, Zhang Yufei also discovered her own flaw - scoliosis. "My spine is S-shaped and cannot bear too much weight. This causes me injuries and back pain. "
Such a blow is almost devastating to Zhang Yufei. In the 2019 World Championships, Zhang Yufei suffered a disastrous defeat and failed to enter the semifinals in the 200-meter butterfly. During the low period, Zhang Yufei kept cheering herself up: "As long as you can't kill me, , I will be stronger tomorrow."
However, what she didn't expect was that after implementing the new training plan for three months, one day she suddenly discovered that her results had ranked first in the world.
"I thought it was incredible at the time. This result was my result. Did you swim out? "Zhang Yufei said that until a subsequent test, her results were still at the world-class level, which built up confidence for her in subsequent competitions.
By training harder, Zhang Yufei ushered in a "butterfly change" at the Tokyo Olympics. While becoming the new generation of "Butterfly Queen" in swimming, her career has also begun to take off.
Zhang Yufei (Source: Modern Express)
"We will become a powerful swimming country"
2023 is Zhang Yufei's tenth year in the national team, and it is also a harvest. A fruitful year. In a previous interview,
Zhang Yufei scored 95 points for her performance in 2023. “The remaining 5 points are because I think I can do better, so I will bring the experience and lessons learned. Until next year. "
In Zhang Yufei's heart, national interests and team honor are above all else. Talking about giving up her women's 200-meter butterfly final for the relay event at the World Championships, Zhang Yufei said she did not regret it at all, "That was a seven-time world champion! "
legends will eventually come to an end. Zhang Yufei lamented that in the past, she was the "thigh" of her senior brothers and sisters during the swimming relay race, but now she is the "thigh" of the national team. Chinese swimming has the legacy of generations to come. Only through inheritance and hard work can we achieve our current position in the world of swimming.
"The young players (born in 2008 and 2009) should already be the backbone of the Chinese swimming team, and we will also become a strong swimming nation by then. "Zhang Yufei said.
When talking about future goals, Zhang Yufei said frankly that the Paris Olympics is the "biggest event" in the Year of the Dragon. She hopes to continue the state of 2023 to the Paris Olympics, and also hopes to surpass her achievements in the Tokyo Olympics.
" I want to be the butterfly queen of the world. "Zhang Yufei said confidently.
Jimu News combines Xinhua News Agency, China News Service, China Sports News, CCTV News, Beijing News, and Modern Express
(Source: Jimu News)
