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At the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, a deafening cheer erupted from the poolside. The 23-year-old Zhang Yufei just won the gold medal in the 200m butterfly with an astonishing time of 2:03.86, setting a new Olympic record.
The moment she stood on the podium, tears welled up uncontrollably. Looking up at the sky, she whispered, "Dad, I did it."
This girl from Xuzhou proved her strength to the world with a proud record of two golds and two silvers. However, what is less known is that when she was only 4 years old, her father left her forever.
What kind of touching story is hidden behind this hard-won glory? Let's unveil the mystery of the growth process of this "Asian butterfly queen".
In 1998, Zhang Yufei was born in a "swimming family" in Xuzhou. Her parents were both former swimmers who retired and became coaches. Such a family background seems to indicate Zhang Yufei's indissoluble bond with water.
When she was three years old, her parents made a seemingly cruel decision - to throw their young daughter into the water "mercilessly". However, this decision became a turning point for Zhang Yufei's future.
Unexpectedly, the little Zhang Yufei did not have a fear of water, but showed an extraordinary affinity. In the water, she is like a free little fish, happily shuttling, as if she has found her own world.
However, fate always likes to give surprises. When Zhang Yufei was four years old, the bad news suddenly struck - her beloved father died of illness. When she was young, she could not fully understand the meaning of "death", but she was ignorantly aware of the changes in the family atmosphere, and saw her mother busy and working every day, and her face was full of sadness.
When Zhang Yufei was five years old, her mother made a key decision - to introduce her daughter to the famous swimming coach Kong Miao. Since then, Zhang Yufei has officially embarked on the road of professional swimming training.
In the face of a stern coach, the little girl showed extraordinary tenacity and hard work.
Coach Kong Miao recalled, "In the initial challenge, she often lost. But surprisingly, she never cried even when she failed. On the contrary, she always shows amazing resilience to be the first to step up in the next challenge.
This indomitable spirit may come from missing my father and repaying my mother.
In this way, in the process of hard training and continuous breakthroughs, Zhang Yufei's swimming skills are becoming more and more sophisticated. At the age of 13, she ushered in the first important turning point in her life - with her outstanding performance, she was successfully selected for the Jiangsu Provincial Swimming Team, becoming the youngest member of the team.
Since then, the story of this "water elf" has opened a new chapter, and her swimming journey has begun to move towards a broader stage.
In 2014, 16-year-old Zhang Yufei made a stunning appearance at the National Swimming Championships like a rising star. She won the 200m and 400m freestyle titles, and this outstanding performance won her the favor of the national team.
In September of the same year, at the Incheon Asian Games, Zhang Yufei, who made her debut on the Asian stage, won the gold medal in the women's 4×100m freestyle relay, showing extraordinary strength and potential.
In 2015, Zhang Yufei's career ushered in its first peak. At the World Championships in Kazan, the 17-year-old won the bronze medal in the 200m butterfly final with a time of 2:06.51, setting a new record for the fastest time in the world junior butterfly.
Her all-round development has attracted media attention and she has been hailed as the "Hexagonal Warrior", showing extraordinary talent in all aspects of strength, speed, skill, explosiveness, and more.
However, the 2016 Rio Olympics gave Zhang Yufei a blow to the head. Stepping onto the Olympic stage for the first time, she finished sixth in the 200m butterfly.
After the game, Zhang Yufei recalled: "At that time, I was sitting in the check-in room, as if it had solidified into stone. The first time I stepped onto the Olympic stage, my mind went blank with nervousness, and I just wanted the competition to end as soon as possible.
This defeat plunged Zhang into deep self-doubt.
Fate always seemed to test the young swimmer. In 2017, the national team welcomed a new coach, Cui Dengrong, a change that brought a turning point in Zhang Yufei's career.
Under the guidance of Coach Cui, Zhang Yufei gradually adjusted his mentality and training methods. Cui Dengrong is not only her coach, but also her emotional support, to some extent to fill the vacancy after her father's death.
Zhang Yufei affectionately called him "Daddy Cui" or "Daddy Cui", and a deep friendship between the two was established.
However, the 2019 World Championships once again dealt Zhang Yufei a heavy blow. Due to her physical discomfort, she failed to achieve the desired results in both the 100m and 200m butterfly races.
To her dismay, American McKeown easily broke the 100m butterfly record in the race, setting a new world record with a time of 55.66 seconds.
This news was like a bolt from the blue, which made Zhang Yufei doubt his strength for a while.
In the face of setbacks, Zhang Yufei did not choose to give up. With Coach Cui's encouragement and guidance, she readjusted her training plan to focus on improving her skills in the 100m butterfly.
By delving into the technical details and adjusting the rhythm of her breathing, she gradually found her own rhythm.
This difficult experience instead became a foreshadowing for Zhang Yufei's later glory. At the beginning of 2020, she won the 100m butterfly with an excellent time of 56.29 seconds in the summer test competition of the national swimming team.
This result not only restored her confidence, but also laid the foundation for her to perform well at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
Zhang Yufei's national team career is like a journey of ups and downs. From her stunning debut in the national team, to her defeat at the Olympics, to finding herself again in the midst of setbacks, every up-and-down has made her stronger.
This experience not only honed her technique, but also sharpened her will, laying a solid foundation for her later brilliant performance at the Tokyo Olympics.
In 2021, the much-anticipated Tokyo Olympics finally kicked off. After hard training and mental adjustment, the 23-year-old Zhang Yufei is fully prepared and vows to show his strength on this world-class stage.
First of all, in the women's 100m butterfly final, Zhang Yufei performed well and won the silver medal. This medal is not only her personal breakthrough, but also the first swimming medal of the Chinese swimming team in this Olympic Games, which has injected a boost into the team.
As the whistle sounded at the beginning of the game, Zhang Yufei rushed out like an arrow from the string. Every movement is full of power and grace, as if one with the water. The moment she touched the wall, the time plate showed 2:03.86 that made the audience boil.
This result not only won her a gold medal, but also an Olympic record! Zhang Yufei finally proved himself in the Olympic arena and realized a dream he had dreamed of for many years.
But Zhang's Olympic journey is not over yet. In the women's 4×200m freestyle relay final held on the same day, she and her teammates once again worked together to create a miracle.
They broke the world record with an astonishing time of 7:40.33 and became the champion again. At this moment, Zhang Yufei is not only the champion of the individual event, but also the creator of the team's glory.
In the end, Zhang Yufei won 2 golds and 2 silvers in this Olympic Games and became a well-deserved focus figure. When the reporter asked her how she felt, Zhang Yufei, who has always been strong, finally couldn't cry.
"It's been too long since I've been able to call out that dear 'Daddy,' but I often dream of him," she said. During the Rio Olympics, I met him in a dream; Before I set out on my journey to the Tokyo Olympics, I dreamed of him again.
I know I'm not alone in this fierce competition. I firmly believe that my father must be watching me silently from heaven and cheering me on.
From the defeat in Rio to the glory of Tokyo, Zhang Yufei has completed an astonishing transformation in four years. Her success is not only a technological advancement, but also a psychological growth.
In the Olympic arena, she not only defeated her opponents, but also defeated herself, achieving the transformation from a girl to a champion. Zhang Yufei's Olympic story will forever be engraved in the history of Chinese swimming and become a valuable asset to inspire future generations.
Zhang Yufei's growth process is a moving story of love and perseverance. Although her father's early death cast a shadow on her young heart, her mother's tenacity and dedication, as well as the careful guidance of her coaches, together filled the lack of father's love and became her invisible force to move forward.
In order to support Zhang Yufei's training, her mother got up at 5 o'clock in the morning every day, squeezed the bus to the swimming pool with her sleeping daughter in her arms, and then hurried back to work in her swimming pool.
This silent dedication has become the source of motivation for Zhang Yufei's struggle. Mother's strength and sacrifice made Zhang Yufei understand the meaning of responsibility and perseverance.
Coach Cui Dengrong became Zhang Yufei's spiritual support. He not only guided her training, but also became the object of her confiding in her. In Zhang Yufei's heart, Coach Cui filled the vacancy after her father's death and gave her fatherly care and guidance.
This relationship of teacher and father has provided Zhang Yufei with emotional support and helped her through the low point of her career.
And swimming has become a unique way for Zhang Yufei to express his thoughts on his father. Whenever she struggled forward in the water, it was as if she could feel her father's encouragement and support.
This invisible force pushed her to constantly break through herself and finally reach the podium of the Olympic champion.
Zhang Yufei's story teaches us that even in the face of adversity, as long as we are nourished by love and persevering in faith, we can create amazing miracles.
The success of the Olympics is only a milestone in Zhang's career, not the end. The "Asian Butterfly" has set her sights on the future. She has set an ambition and vowed to break the world record before retiring and become a well-deserved "butterfly queen" in the world.
However, as she grew older, Zhang Yufei also faced new challenges in balancing family and career. Her mother's remarriage brought her a lovely younger sister, and the changes in the family added new colors and responsibilities to her life.
No matter what the future holds, we believe that this girl who has experienced the hardships of life will be able to continue to ride the wind and waves on the track of life and create more brilliance.
Just like her performance in the Olympic arena, Zhang Yufei's life story will continue to inspire countless people to chase their dreams and never give up.
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