CHINA DAILY MONDAY, JULY 30, 2012 olympics 5 Rhode King of the rings makes US doesn’t come easy By TANG ZHE Chen’s parents started him in history [email protected] the sport when he was 5 years old. He struggled to stand out After its seven-gold-medal among his peers, and several performance at the Beijing times considered quitting. with gold Games in 2008, the Chinese Chen said his toughest period men’s gymnastics team was hit was from 1996 to 2000, when with a wave of retirements. he moved to the professional By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE Th ere have been times in the team but achieved little in com- in London ensuing years when Chen Yib- petition. ing wished he “I was very upset during the Shooter Kim Rhode missed just would’ve been mediocre years,” he said. “I felt one shot out of 100 — equaling the among them. frightened when my parents world record — as she became US’ And yet here and friends asked me about my fi rst individual medalist at fi ve straight he is, the defend- training and competition. I was Olympics by winning in the women’s ing champion in embarrassed and didn’t know skeet on Sunday. the rings and the team compe- how to answer their questions. Rhode, a medalist in Atlanta, Syd- tition, back in London as the That was the worst time for ney, Athens and Beijing, destroyed the core of a young team. me. I lost my goals and didn’t fi eld at the Royal Artillery Barracks, Even now, Chen admits he’s know why I trained so hard never looking remotely in danger worried he’ll end his career on a every day.” under cloudy skies in south London. sour note. Doubt began creep- Things began turning China’s Wei Ning won silver with ing in back in 2009, when he around in 2001. He won a Danka Bartekova of Slovakia taking could only claim bronze in the gold medal in the rings, and a bronze aft er a shoot-off . But the com- rings at the National Games, bronze medal in the individual petition was a procession for Rhode and was disqualified in the all-round at his last national — who then warned her rivals she had fi nals of the World Champion- junior championship. He was no intention of retiring. ships a month later. sent to the national team as a Rhode, 33, won golds in women’s “I was busy in various activi- substitute shortly thereaft er. double trap in Atlanta in 1996 and in ties and loose in training aft er Chen won his fi rst national Athens in 2004, taking bronze in the the Olympic Games. When I title in the rings in 2005, and event in Sydney in 2000. restarted my training in 2009, claimed his fi rst world cham- She switched to skeet full-time diff erent problems came to me, pionship in his international when women’s double trap was dis- one aft er another,” Chen said. debut at the 2006 World continued as an Olympic event aft er “I received too much applause Artistic Gymnastics Cham- Athens, and grabbed silver in the dis- and too many fl owers aft er the pionships. He became almost cipline four years ago in Beijing. Olympics. I was a little lost and unbeatable in his specialty. His “One got away but everyone misses didn’t train as hard as before.” performance on the rings at the every now and then,” said a delighted In the midst of all that, Chen Beijing Olympics was praised Rhode. was appointed captain of the as textbook for its precision “I know that I felt very comfortable Chinese men’s gymnastics and high level of diffi culty. in that fi nal round and through the team at the end of 2009. The 27-year-old will lead match and was really ready. I felt that “The trust of (head coach China’s young squad, which has I had done everything I could and Huang Yubin) was a boost to suff ered a tough start. Pommel there wasn’t anything more and I was me. I felt the power and con- horse specialist and individual just going to let the chips lay where fidence I had lost come back all-round competitor Teng Haib- they may.” to me again. Th e team needed in withdrew three days before “It’s just been an incredible journey me and I had to shoulder the the opening due to an injury. and ultimately I couldn’t be happier responsibility,” Chen said. Chinese gymnasts made for bringing home the gold for the And then, Chen was back. dozens of mistakes in the men’s United States,” she added. He won gold medals at the qualifi cation and ranked sixth Speaking about her US first, she MARWAN NAAMANI / AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE 2010 Rotterdam World Cham- in the team event. Nobody has said: “I don’t think it’s hit me yet. I’m Chinese shooter Guo Wenjun won the gold medal in the women’s 10m air pistol at the London Games on Sunday. “It was pionship, the 2010 Guangzhou qualifi ed in the vault or pom- sure later on tonight that the record not easy to prepare for the Olympic Games after giving birth last year,” she said. Asian Games and the 2011 mel horse. and everything that represents (will Tokyo World Championship. “More criticism means high- hit me). Right now I’m just focusing “I stood up from where I felt er expectation — we will spare on my second event ... and hopefully down,” said Chen, nicknamed no eff ort to reverse the game in we’ll be looking at 2016. I’m not look- “the king of the rings”. “I fought the fi nal,” Chen said. “Th ough ing at this being my last Olympics.” back against the public’s dis- as the captain I hope the Chi- “I can go on for a very long time,” trust with my hard work and nese men’s gymnastics team added Rhode. “That’s the beauty of accomplishment. I am still the can continue its glory, I have to shooting. It’s something that you can If you’re bad, kind of person who can change admit we are not as competitive do. It’s not a flash-in-the-pan type my fate with persistent eff ort.” as we used to be in 2008, but we thing. I defi nitely don’t see any end Compared with other Chi- will hold on.” in sight.” nese gymnasts, Chen is a late Chen is hoping to become Aft er a bright start to the day, storms bloomer. He won his first the first to win consecutive swept across the temporary venue but international title at the World gold medals in the rings. the rain held off for the fi nal, where Championship in 2006 at the “I hope I can be ‘the fi rst man Rhode fi nished with 99 hits out of 100 age of 21. of rings,’ ” he said. of the fast-moving clay pigeon targets. Mommy really Wei was a distant second with 91 hits, while Bartekova was involved in a shoot-off for bronze aft er she fi nished level on 90 hits with Russia’s Marina Belikova. Rhode came top in the qualifying competition, hitting 74 targets out of 75 to notch a new Olympic record. might shoot you Skeet requires competitors to hit a clay target moving away from them. Th e top six shooters from the qualifi - cation go into the fi nal, where they fi re China’s Guo Wenjun won gold in air pistol, as one of a further 25 targets, with the scores added to their qualifying tally. several new mothers on the team, Chen Xiangfeng reports. Rhode’s build-up to the London Games was hit when fl ight problems forced her to miss her team’s train- hinese athletes would nor- I will encourage years ago in Beijing, when she was 33. ing camp in Denmark, and when her mally rather have babies Th is year, Chen Ying is aiming for four-month-old puppy ate her plane aft er retirement for fear that our young team- glory in the women’s 25m pistol on ticket. C maternity would aff ect their mates to seek love Aug 1, while Du Li will compete in DYLAN MARTINEZ / REUTERS careers. and marriage, even the women’s 50m rifl e 3 positions on Chen Yibing of China competes in the pommel horse at the But three members of the Chinese if they are still Aug 4. men’s gymnastics qualifi cation in the North Greenwich Arena on women’s shooting team — all gold Du, who’s also the Athens Olympic Saturday. medalists at the 2008 Beijing Olym- athletes.” champion, had to miss several quali- pics — set their sites on GUO WENJUN fiers because her baby son was too ‘‘ CHINESE SHOOTER the 2012 Games as new young. She then decided to take her moms. baby with her to Beijing and rented a Reigning women’s house next to the training base. 10m air pistol champion Olympic Games aft er giving birth last Du, who’s in her third Olympics Guo Wenjun became year. I had to take care of the baby and at age 30, believed that becoming a China’s fi rst new mother to take gold started training to gain as many more mother has made her more relaxed in London on Sunday, aft er making an points as possible during the Olympic and mature.