"Because of the passion, I am not tired!" The Sichuanese players of the Chinese women's team return with glory | Cover Deep Mirror
2024-08-14
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Cover News reporter Zhou Yi and Zhang Yidan photographed the report
At 11:50 on August 14, at the exit of Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, Chen Zhaoxia and colleagues from Sichuan Baseball and Softball Sports Management Center held a banner that read "Iceberg Snow Lotus Blooms Again" with several bouquets of flowers next to it.
At this time, Air China flight CA1421 from Beijing Capital Airport to Chengdu has landed. The 10 Sichuan-born Chinese women's hockey players and their coach, who have completed their Paris Olympic journey, returned home amid flowers and applause.
Chinese women's team members from Sichuan return to Sichuan
Four days ago, the Chinese women's hockey team stood on the stage of the Olympic final again after 16 years. In the end, they lost to the Netherlands team in a penalty shootout and won the runner-up. This result also tied the best result in history.
"Silver medal with glittering gold"
"Warmly welcome the triumphant Olympic athletes, and may the iceberg snow lotus bloom again." In the arrival hall of Shuangliu Airport, before the team members came out, Chen Zhaoxia and her colleagues had already held up a banner. Many media outlets and some citizens were looking towards the exit.
Ou Zixia, wearing the Chinese team uniform, was the first to come out, pushing her luggage with a smile on her face, waving to everyone. Other team members followed her into the hall, holding flowers, taking photos with the citizens, and accepting the enthusiasm from their hometown people.
"This is a silver medal shining with golden light." Chen Zhaoxia, former captain of the Chinese women's hockey team, who also won a silver medal in the Beijing Olympics, told the Cover News reporter that this time the women's hockey team's Olympic journey was not easy. They entered the knockout stage as fourth in the group, facing Australia and Belgium successively, and finally made it to the final to face the world's number one team, the Netherlands.
Chinese women's team members from Sichuan return to Sichuan
Only about 5 minutes into the final, Chen Yi from Deyang, Sichuan, scored the first goal in the scrimmage in front of the opponent's goal. However, despite this, the strong strength of the Dutch team also put great defensive pressure on the Chinese team, and it was not until the fourth quarter that the Dutch team equalized the score.
In the penalty shootout, the Chinese team lost to the Netherlands 1-3 and won the Olympic silver medal again after the Beijing Olympics. After the game, Chen Zhaoxia, who participated in the Beijing Olympic finals, said, "They lost with honor. Everyone played very well. Women's curling is a team sport. Only when everyone does well can we get such a good result."
“Because I love it, I’m not tired!”
After leaving the airport, the team members first returned to the Sichuan Baseball and Softball Sports Management Center, where they had their first hometown meal after returning to Sichuan.
The first home-cooked meal for the Sichuanese members of the Chinese women's team after returning home
Captain Ou Zixia was very happy to eat the long-missed hometown dishes. "I feel very happy to be back in Sichuan, and it is also very heartwarming to see everyone coming to welcome her." During this Olympic journey, Leshan girl Ou Zixia also has a special identity - the flag bearer of the Chinese delegation at the closing ceremony.
The Paris Olympics may be Ou Zixia's last Olympics as an athlete. "I am very satisfied with the team's performance this time, which showed the fighting spirit and characteristics of the Chinese women's hockey team." Ou Zixia said that after returning to Sichuan, she will take a short break first, and then continue to train and prepare for the next game.
Zou Meirong, who participated in the Olympics for the first time, is also from Leshan and scored a crucial goal in the match against Belgium. This girl born in the 2000s is daring and aggressive on the field, but she was a little shy when facing the interview. "I am very excited to participate in the Olympics for the first time, and I am honored to be second." In the interview, Zou Meirong also expressed the hope that everyone will pay more attention to hockey. "Although it is tiring, it is not tiring because I love it."
Chinese women's curling team won silver medal at Paris Olympics
Another goalkeeper Ye Jiao from Chengdu, she made three amazing saves in the 23-meter match against Belgium, and saved many shots from the opponent in the final, and was called the "goalkeeper of women's curling". Ye Jiao said, first of all, thank you for your support and attention, "I will take a break for a while, and then continue to work hard!"
“Always strive for first place”
The Paris Olympics has come to an end, but the women's hockey team has not stopped moving forward.
Looking back on this Olympic journey, Huang Yongsheng, the head coach of the Chinese women's hockey team, said that the players worked very hard and experienced ups and downs in the competition, including unsatisfactory results in the group stage, and faced the world's fourth-ranked Australian team in the knockout stage, as well as the Belgian team, which they had lost to in the group stage, and played a thrilling game.
Huang Yongsheng also revealed that before the final against the Netherlands, the team had made several plans for possible situations in the game, "such as what to do in case of a tie, what to do if a goal is scored first, what to do if the team takes the lead first, all of which were deployed in advance." In Huang Yongsheng's view, there is still a gap in individual skills and capabilities between the team and the world's traditional strong teams in the field hockey event. "Our players have performed very well. What we have is the spirit of fighting for the country and the spirit of not admitting defeat on the field. The next step will be to continue to improve our technical and tactical capabilities."
Chinese women's curling team in the final of the Paris Olympics. Photo from Xinhuanet
As the players said, they will rest for a while and then continue to train to prepare for the next game. The National Women's Field Hockey Championship is expected to start in October. Previously, the Sichuan women's field hockey team has won seven consecutive championships in the event. Huang Yongsheng said that the Chinese women's field hockey team won the second place in the Beijing Olympics and the second place in the Paris Olympics, but the results belong to the past. "Always strive for the first place, this is the most important thing."
