exclusive interview with xiong guiyan, the oldest athlete of the chinese delegation at the paris paralympics: "i'm only 48, i can still play!"
2024-09-02
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yangcheng evening news all-media reporter liu zhuonan reported: on august 31, local time, at the south paris arena, in the paris paralympic table tennis mixed doubles competition, 48-year-old xiong guiyan and her partner peng weinan won the silver medal in the mixed doubles-xd17 final.
this is xiong guiyan's third paralympic games. at 48 years old, she becomes the oldest athlete in the chinese sports delegation at the paris paralympic games.
xiong guiyan's table tennis career is special. she was a healthy athlete who started playing table tennis at the age of 7 and became a professional athlete of the heilongjiang provincial team at the age of 13. later, she had to retire due to serious sports injuries. in 2012, the 36-year-old xiong guiyan returned to the court as a disabled table tennis player. she participated in many international competitions, won a silver medal in the rio paralympics, and won 1 silver and 1 bronze in the tokyo paralympics.
what many people don’t know is that now, at the age of 48, she is not only an athlete but also a coach of the guangdong provincial team, and has trained paralympic champions such as huang wenjuan and pan jiamin.
"i'm only 48 years old, i can still play! i will participate in the 15th national games and the paralympic games next year!" during the interview, xiong guiyan excitedly told the yangcheng evening news all-media reporter.
"i will also participate in the 15th national games next year"
in this issue of "paralympic podcast", yangcheng evening news omnimedia reporter exclusively interviewed xiong guiyan and told her table tennis story.
yangcheng evening news: how do you feel about participating in the paralympics for the third time?
xiong guiyan: i was actually calmer and more focused this time than in the previous two sessions. my mindset was simpler and i just wanted to play well. it may also be related to my identity as a coach. i have more experience, so i am calmer and can analyze the ball more thoroughly than before.
yangcheng evening news: you were a professional athlete before, but later retired due to injury. after more than 10 years of silence, you returned to the court as a disabled athlete. what made you choose table tennis again?
xiong guiyan: i had been playing for the heilongjiang provincial team for almost 8 years. during one of those matches, i injured my right leg and was diagnosed with sclerotic osteomyelitis. around 1997, because of the serious injury, i chose to retire and rest. after about 10 years, i found a job. but i found that i still liked table tennis. i communicated with the coaches of the previous heilongjiang provincial team, and they said that i could play again as a disabled athlete, so i took this path again.
in fact, there is still a process of transformation and adjustment from a healthy athlete to a disabled athlete. what i remember most vividly is a city-wide table tennis competition. i won the game with my sick leg. i was very proud and proud at that time. i found that i still loved table tennis. maybe life is to play in the direction of what you like and are good at, so that the road may be smoother. so in 2012, i returned to the table tennis court. in 2013, i joined the chinese disabled table tennis team women's team. i am still very happy to represent the country in international competitions.
yangcheng evening news: how do you view your two different table tennis careers? what are the differences in your feelings in different competitions?
xiong guiyan: in fact, the spirit of sports is the same, self-reliance and self-improvement. but sports may bring greater changes and motivation to people with disabilities. many people with disabilities have a narrow path in life, but sports may change their lives, allowing them to go out of their homes, see the outside world, and even stand on the world stage. this is very inspiring and a life path that can be persisted.
yangcheng evening news: you are both a coach and an athlete. at the age of 48, you still insist on playing in the front line. what is the reason for your persistence?
xiong guiyan: there are many older table tennis players. in the last paralympic games, there were also players in their 50s, but this time they all retired, so i became the oldest. but in table tennis, compared to physical fitness, the requirements for skills and tactics are higher, so there are more people who persist in playing.
the reason i persisted was probably because i liked it and felt that i was good in all aspects. as a coach, i need to know what the trends and levels are in the world, and what kind of team to build, so i can directly understand it when i go out to compete. on the other hand, the coach can play with the players, understand the players' psychology and thoughts, and give the players a lot of comfort, which is spiritual companionship. therefore, if i can play for a year, i will persist for a year.
yangcheng evening news: have you ever thought about what else you want to do in your life besides table tennis?
xiong guiyan: i basically don’t think about anything else right now, all i think about is table tennis. i will also participate in the 15th national games and the paralympic games next year. even if i don’t play anymore, i will still lead my teammates to play in various competitions. table tennis is inseparable from my life.
