In the 2016 Olympic Games, the Chinese women's basketball team ushered in a crucial battle.
At this time, Chen Nan, who had been retired for three years and had already been married and had children, should be recalled and snatched the Olympic spot from many strong opponents.
And this is also Chen Nan's fourth time in the Olympic Games.
The talented teenager who was selected for the national team at the age of 16 and became an Asian champion at the age of 18 is still struggling to win a title in four Olympic Games.
After so many years, watching his old teammates leave one by one, has Chen Nan let go of the obsession in his heart and enjoyed life?
After retiring, did she have a good life?
1
In 1983, Chen Nan was born in an ordinary family in Shandong.
His father is a standard Shandong big man, just 1.85 meters tall to stand there, looking at it has a sense of security.
The mother's height is far lower than the standard for women in Shandong, only 1.60 meters.
According to everyone's common thinking, the children of the two should not be particularly tall, who can think that Chen Nan is that accident.
By 1989, Chen Nan, who had not yet passed his 6th birthday, had reached 1.4 meters tall.
Although it is a good thing that this child is tall, standing with his peers will inevitably seem a little out of place.
The parents were also afraid that Chen Nan would be criticized by his classmates at school in the future, so as soon as the two discussed, they sent Chen Nan to the school in advance.
Although Chen Nan's height at this time is still quite tall, after all, there is a gap between age and classmates, which is not outrageous.
However, this situation cannot be maintained until the end of primary school.
In 1995, Chen Nan, who was less than 12 years old, was already 1.8 meters.
Parents think that their daughter has such good congenital conditions, isn't it a pity if she doesn't play basketball?
So he sent Chen Nan to the city sports school for professional physical training.
Not long after, Chen Nan, who had a little foundation, was selected by the first team and began professional training related to basketball.
At that time, the coach positioned Chen Nan as a center, and the most important responsibilities were only two: defense and grabbing the board.
Chen Nan's height advantage far beyond ordinary people can often allow her to play a decisive role on the defensive end.
At the same time, as a left-handed player, Chen Nan can often play a surprising role when grabbing the board.
Moreover, this is not to say that knowing the information in advance is something you can guard against.
After all, for many players, they are playing based on existing memories, and a moment's pause can turn the tide.
Of course, left-handed players also mean that Chen Nan has to work harder than others to adapt and learn basketball skills.
In addition, the position of center forward itself is a position with more skills, which also leads to Chen Nan having to learn far more than ordinary players.
But Chen Nan did not give up because of this, no matter what kind of training task the coach arranged, she was able to grit her teeth and insist on completing it.
This insistence is a full 3 years.
Until 1998, Chen Nan, who performed well in all aspects, was finally selected by the National Youth Team.
This year, she was 15 years old.
2
Being able to join the national youth team at the age of 15 can only be said to be talented, but it cannot be regarded as the smallest talent.
After all, there are many people younger than her who were selected for the national youth team.
Far from it, Sui Feifei, who is about the same age as her, has entered the national youth team at the age of 14, has begun to show her face in major leagues at the age of 15, and has become an Asian champion at the age of 17.
In contrast, Chen Nan looked ordinary.
According to the normal situation, Chen Nan also needs to experience two years in the domestic league, and then be selected to join the national team to compete internationally.
But I have to say that the timing of Chen Nan's joining the national youth team is very clever.
In 1999, the national team, which was in the process of alternating old and new, had serious problems running-in, and lost successively in the Olympic trials, and missed the 2000 Olympic Games.
After the news came back, it attracted huge criticism from fans, and coach Ma Yuenan also left class.
Gong Luming, who took over the position of head coach of the women's basketball team, is a coach with a very distinctive coaching style.
His usual coaching method is to promote young players with momentum, temper them through competitions, and screen out players who can grow up quickly in a high-pressure environment.
Although this method is not as smooth as the "old with the new", it is much more cruel in comparison.
But I have to say that it does have an effect, and Gong Luming previously brought out many Asian Games champions through this method.
And the young and talented Chen Nan successfully entered Gong Luming's sight.
At the end of 1999, Chen Nan was officially transferred to the national team and began to be trained by Gong Luming.
At that time, including Chen Nan, the coaching staff selected a total of 12 people and were sent to South Korea to receive professional baptism as "exchange students".
Not to mention, there are many good seedlings in this batch of players.
Among them, the most surprising thing for the coaching staff is naturally Chen Nan.
Chen Nan has a height advantage, and he can often be invincible when grabbing the board.
After playing in the league for a year, he also showed a good three-point scoring ability.
In this way, Chen Nan can fully afford the team's defensive responsibilities and provide assistance for the team's defensive counterattack when necessary.
Chen Nan, who was valued, immediately became the main center of the team after returning.
Of course, she alone is not enough, and the team also includes the trio who won the 1996 Asian Championships.
Both strength and talent are excellent, and Sui Feifei, a small forward with full impact.
Miao Lijie, an offensive defender who can always keenly capture the vacancy in the field and has strong scoring ability.
Power forward Chen Luyun, who is good at mobilizing the offensive rhythm of the whole team and creating scoring opportunities for his teammates in obscurity.
At this time, Chen Nan, whether it is his own strength or the strength of his teammates, is world-class.
The time and place are favorable, and the time that belongs to Chen Nan has come.
At the 2001 Asian Championships, this team, which was almost entirely composed of young players, emerged and won the championship while also swearing the rise of women's basketball.
Then he was the Asian Games champion in 2002, the sixth in the World Championships, the World Universiade champion in 2003, the Asian Championship champion in 2004...
All these indicate that the women's basketball team has returned to the top of Asia, and even has a comparative force internationally.
In this context, the Olympic Games are here, and this is the best opportunity for teams to test their success.
At the 2004 Olympics, all the team members went for medals.
But as a result, it always backfires.
In the crucial battle of qualifying for the group stage, Chen Luyun, who was responsible for organizing the team's attack, suddenly slipped and left the field injured.
After the loss of one general, there was a commotion in the team, and another main player, Ye Li, also began to make frequent mistakes and was sent off by the referee.
Even so, the team can still play back and forth with the other side when there are still three main forces, and even have a slight lead.
But at this time, Chen Nan slipped to injury and had to bid farewell to the arena temporarily.
The successive accidents of the main team members inevitably shake the military spirit of the team.
Chen Nan sat on the bench like this, and the team was killed at the last moment and gave up the qualifying spot.
Chen Nan's first Olympic journey ended in regret and helplessness.
3
The first Olympic snobbish national team was not blamed by fans, after all, their efforts have been seen.
But Chen Nan is still unwilling, she thinks she can do better.
After returning to China, Chen Nan began to train harder under the leadership of the new coach.
It wasn't until 2008 that her chance for revenge finally came.
This time at the Olympics, the women's basketball team worked together to reach the semifinals.
In the face of the interception of the world-class center, Chen Nan's performance is still brilliant, giving the other party great pressure.
Under this pressure, the opponent began to make frequent mistakes, and there were even cases where players were sent off the field.
It's just that the high-intensity confrontation is also a burden for Chen Nan.
At half-time, I had to go off because of an attack on my waist.
After losing Chen Nan, the team's state had ups and downs again, and in the end, it could only regret to accept the fourth place and bid farewell to the Olympic Games.
Although the results of this year's women's basketball team are not bad, it is undoubtedly painful for the players to miss the medal twice in a row.
In 2009, Chen Luyun's family changed, and he chose to retire because of his injuries.
Immediately afterwards, captain Sui Feifei also retired and chose to retire to become a coach and continue to cultivate young players.
The once brilliant women's basketball team, only Chen Nan and Miao Lijie are still insisting.
In 2012, Chen Nan, who had just married her husband, hurried back and joined hands with Miao Lijie to compete in the Olympics again.
Although this time, Chen Nan's strength is still at the world's first-line level, and he won the title of group stage scoring king.
However, it is still difficult to change the decline of the team, and it can finally win a sixth place.
After the game, Miao Lijie also chose to retire.
At this time, persistence seems to be meaningless, and giving opportunities to young people may be a better choice.
In 2014, Chen Nan became pregnant and announced her retirement.
Although after her body recovered, many team leaders came to persuade Chen Nan to come back, but she refused.
It seemed that everything would go into a quiet life, until the national team lost at the Asian Championships in 2015 and gave up a spot straight to the Olympics.
The national team coach approached Chen Nan and hoped that she could help the team again.
And this time, Chen Nan did not refuse.
In 2016, Chen Nan, who had bid farewell to the competition for 885 days, put on the battle again, and won the Olympic place with a group of young players.
This Olympic Games is Chen Nan's fourth Olympic trip and her final farewell to the world arena.
Regardless of the results, at least Chen Nan's behavior has been respected by all fans.
In 2017, Chen Nan, who had never been able to give up basketball, returned to the Bayi team, and he was a team leader, coach and player, and he led the team to win a league runner-up with difficulty.
This time, it was also Chen Nan's final farewell to the stadium.
After that, Chen Nan said goodbye to the spotlight and transformed to do behind-the-scenes work.
Gradually, there is very little news about it.
Thinking about it, she has let go of the regrets of the past and enjoys the ordinary life.