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recently, paris olympic rhythmic gymnastics champion ding xinyi returned to chongqing and was hired as the cultural and tourism spokesperson for shapingba.

walking on the stone road of ciqikou ancient town, standing in front of the stage of chongqing 1949 grand theater, and then to the pastoral scenery of sanhe village... ding xinyi uses her own experience to recommend the beauty and charm of her hometown to the world.

while promoting her hometown, ding xinyi accepted media interviews and talked about her experience at the olympics.

ding xinyi was hired as the spokesperson for shapingba's cultural tourism. photo courtesy of shapingba district media integration center

winning a gold medal in his first olympic trip

more courage to face future challenges

"thank you to my childhood self for choosing the right path."

ding xinyi's story with rhythmic gymnastics began in 2009. by chance, during a hot spring bath, xu yading, the current head coach of the chongqing rhythmic gymnastics professional team, discovered this talented talent.

"ding xinyi has long limbs and a cute look. i could tell at first glance that she was a good candidate for rhythmic gymnastics." xu yading still remembers the scene vividly.

not long after, ding xinyi officially entered the professional study of rhythmic gymnastics. in addition to classroom learning, her main daily focus was on learning and training in rhythmic gymnastics.

"when i was a child, i thought rhythmic gymnastics was so beautiful. i was deeply attracted by the smooth movements and the variety of equipment." ding xinyi recalled that although the day-to-day training was full of challenges and difficulties, for her, being able to stand on the field and communicate with opponents and work tirelessly to achieve her goals was also an enjoyable process.

from shapingba no. 1 experimental primary school, to chongqing no. 7 middle school, and then to chongqing rhythmic gymnastics professional team, ding xinyi's body flexibility, equipment sense, basic skills and other abilities are outstanding. in 2022, when she was less than 18 years old, she officially joined the national team.

ding xinyi won the gold medal with the chinese rhythmic gymnastics team in her first olympic competition. looking back on this journey, ding xinyi admitted that the improvement of her teamwork ability was her biggest gain. "this experience is very valuable and gives me more courage to face future challenges."

ding xinyi in the game. image source: visual china

champions don't come overnight

encourage junior students to be determined in their goals

after joining the national team from the chongqing team, ding xinyi was confused because she couldn't keep up with her teammates and thought about giving up. but with the encouragement and help of her coach, she regained her confidence and finally realized her dream in paris.

"when i first joined the national team, i was actually very confused. i found that there was a gap between me and other teammates in terms of awareness and technology." ding xinyi said that it was later with the help of coaches and teammates that she gradually found her feeling and direction.

"we were all very nervous at that time. ding xinyi is a rhythmic gymnastics team member trained by us in chongqing and sent to the national team. we definitely hope that she can develop well in all aspects." xu yading said that at that time he and ding xinyi's parents took turns communicating with the child, and ding xinyi's father ding xiaodi even rushed to beijing to accompany her.

after efforts from all sides, ding xinyi gradually became determined and began to devote herself more seriously and hard to the daily training of the national team. finally, at the paris olympics, she helped the chinese rhythmic gymnastics team win the first gold medal in olympic history, making history.

ding xinyi returned to her alma mater, chongqing no. 7 middle school. photo courtesy of shapingba district media center

returning to her alma mater, chongqing no. 7 middle school, ding xinyi also encouraged her younger classmates: "the process of pursuing dreams is boring and difficult, but it takes time to achieve success and reap abundant fruits. don't give up, be determined in your goals, and have strong enough faith, and the best things will always come out at the end."

hualong.com reporter wang xurui/text