Zhang Zhijie, a 17-year-old Chinese badminton player, suddenly fell to the ground while participating in the Asian Youth Badminton Championships, and unfortunately passed away after rescue efforts failed, and countless people mourned the early death of this young athlete.
01
Zhang Zhijie, born in January 2007 in Jiaxing, Zhejiang, has developed a strong interest in badminton since childhood.
He was exposed to this sport from kindergarten and began systematic training at Jiaxing Children's Sports School.
His talent was quickly recognized by his coach, and in the third grade of primary school, he was selected for the Zhejiang Provincial Team, where he began to train more professionally and systematically.
In the Zhejiang provincial team, Zhang Zhijie's badminton skills have been rapidly improved. With his exceptional talent and hard work, he quickly excelled in a wide range of competitions.
In 2022, he won the men's singles championship in the 15-year-old group of the national U series badminton competition and began to make a name for himself in the domestic badminton world.
In 2023, Zhang Zhijie's career ushered in a new peak.
He won the men's singles championship and the men's team championship in Group B in the National Youth Badminton Championships, becoming a leader in the domestic youth badminton world.
In the same year, he won the men's singles championship at the World Youth Badminton Championships, bringing glory to the country.
Entering 2024, Zhang Zhijie's momentum is unabated. In the Dutch Youth Badminton International Grand Prix, he won the men's singles gold medal again, showing the world the strength of the new generation of Chinese badminton.
As a professional badminton player, Zhang Zhijie's resume is very eye-catching, and behind the dazzling resume is Zhang Zhijie's hard training year after year, as well as the endless support of his family.
02
During the match on the evening of June 30, 2024, Zhang Zhijie suddenly fell to the ground. According to witnesses at the scene and video replays, he suddenly fainted while receiving the serve, accompanied by convulsions.
The accident occurred in the first game of the match, when the two sides were tied at 11, Zhang Zhijie was about to receive the serve when he suddenly fell to the ground and lay face down on the court.
Judging from the video, after Zhang Zhijie fell to the ground and had convulsions, the medical staff came to him for more than 40 seconds, but did not take any first aid measures, but called a stretcher, and the stretcher took Zhang Zhijie out of the arena 2 minutes later.
As for when Zhang Zhijie will be rescued by a real professional, it can't be seen on the video.
From Zhang Zhijie falling to the ground to being sent to the hospital, and finally declaring the rescue ineffective, the time factor may have had an important impact on the rescue results.
Studies have shown that CPR can significantly improve survival in patients with cardiac arrest. Especially when CPR is performed within the golden 4 minutes after cardiac arrest, the survival rate of the patient will be greatly increased.
Some emergency doctors say that the key to first aid is cardiopulmonary resuscitation, getting an AED and defibrillation, rather than carrying it on a stretcher.
Due to the limited medical conditions in the area, there may be delays in the rescue. Especially after Zhang Zhijie fell to the ground, he waited for a long time for medical personnel to arrive at the scene, and missed the best rescue opportunity.
Some medical staff mentioned that Zhang Zhijie's death may be related to heart problems. When you exercise vigorously, the pressure on your heart increases, which can lead to sudden death if you have an underlying heart condition.
The Asian Badminton Association and the Indonesian Badminton Association mentioned in a statement that Zhang's death was related to heart problems, but did not elaborate on the specific cause.
It's just that, no matter what the reason is, if timely and effective rescue can be carried out, maybe the result will be different.
03
The sudden death of a 17-year-old badminton star made people lament the fall of the badminton star and denounced the organizers' disregard for life.
As parents and coaches, we must face up to the health and safety of athletes, and we should pay more attention to the physical condition of children, conduct regular physical examinations and health assessments, and identify and deal with potential health problems in a timely manner.
We also call on the whole society to pay attention to the physical and mental health of athletes and provide them with more support and protection.
After this incident, the tournament organizers will probably strengthen the training in first aid and rescue to avoid similar tragedies from happening again, and everything will go in a good direction.
It's just that for Zhang Zhijie's family, this is a pain that cannot be erased for a lifetime.
Pulling a child from birth to 17 years old, watching him grow up little by little, little by little, the hearts of parents grow up with the child.
The child who was still alive and kicking the jackpot to win glory for the country a second ago is suddenly gone, and heaven and man are separated forever, and it hurts to think about it, not to mention the people who have experienced it firsthand.
For the family, it is not so important whether the child can win the first place, whether he is a hero who attracts the attention of the country, but it is more important that the child can grow up safely and healthily.
I hope that young athletes can have a safer and healthier economic environment, and I hope that similar tragedies will not be repeated!