She, the appearance is the focus!
Chusovykina is waiting on the sidelines for training Photo by reporter Ye Yilin
On the evening of September 22, the gymnasium of the Huanglong Sports Center welcomed the most "old" athletes in the gymnastics industry -
Uzbek gymnast Oksana Chusovykina, dressed in the national team jersey, with her short hair tied into a neat bun and a cool hairstyle, came to the stadium for training on the stage.
Chusovikina, a legend in the gymnastics world, is also well-known in China and is affectionately known as "Qiu Ma" by fans. Her appearance attracted the attention of museum staff, volunteers and the media.
Why does "Qiu Mama" receive attention every time she appears? Because she retired three times and made three comebacks, the spirit of hard work and never give up behind this legendary experience has long gone beyond the scope of gymnastics itself.
We are touched by her perseverance in never compromising on destiny, and by her dedicated love for sports, which is not only in the sports arena, but also in the arena of life.
At the age of 48, she returned to the Hangzhou Asian Games. After the training on the platform, the reporter took the "three questions" and had a dialogue with "Qiu Ma" and approached her spiritual world.
Q1: Why did you come back again and participate in the Hangzhou Asian Games?
When we have dreams, we are powerful. Chusovikina, who is still fighting in gymnastics at the age of 48, can be said to be a "spiritual totem" in the international sports world.
"Have you heard? There is a 48-year-old athlete who is also coming to compete these days, how awesome! "Yes, I saw it too, so I admire her." On the evening of the 22nd, the training on the stage had not yet begun, and volunteer Huang Xin and his friends were looking forward to seeing the legendary goddess.
Through the Internet, the young volunteers learned about Chusovykina's story and were touched by her spirit: "It's never too late to have a dream in your heart. ”
This time in Hangzhou, Chusovykina said, is for a dream - to win another major event medal for the motherland of Uzbekistan before truly retiring.
"I feel that I can't end my sporting career without winning any medals for Uzbekistan." She said.
During the training on the stage, the reporter found that unlike other young athletes who actively train in every event, Chusovikina focused on vault training.
This is her strategy. "Because I'm older." Chusovykina told reporters that due to her age and physical strength, she could not devote herself to every project, so she focused on vault.
Her strength on the jumping horse is not bad. Since the beginning of this year, Chusovykina has won medals in the women's vault event in several international competitions. In early September, she won the women's vault championship with her outstanding performance at the International Gymnastics Federation Challenge Cup in Turkey.
Not only at the Hangzhou Asian Games, but also Chusovykina is also training hard to maintain her fitness and represent Uzbekistan at the 2024 Paris Olympics. If qualified, she would become the first active athlete to compete in nine consecutive Olympic Games.
She also told reporters that Hangzhou left a good first impression on her, and hoped to have time to go out and enjoy the beautiful scenery of Hangzhou, and hoped that this place could become her blessed place and achieve her goal of winning medals.
Chusovykina is training in vaulting Photo by reporter Tang Junyao
Q2: What supports her and keeps her in the arena?
Only love can withstand the long years; Only by loving can we not be afraid of the impermanence of the world.
On the evening of the 22nd, the athletes who trained with Chusovykina in the venue were mostly after "00". For example, the members of the Chinese women's gymnastics team participating in the Hangzhou Asian Games were all born after 2000.
Compared with the "00s" around her, Chusovikina has a nearly 40-year gymnastics career, which is older than many athletes. After going through ups and downs, after retiring as a "perfect career" at the age of 21, she experienced two more retirements and three comebacks.
The first comeback was for her son and love for her loved ones. Her son was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 3 years old, and she had to make a comeback at the age of 27 to win prizes by participating in competitions. In order to heal her son, she had to accept an olive branch from Germany and changed her nationality to represent Germany in two Olympic Games. Her great maternal love touched the whole world.
And the second and third comebacks are love for gymnastics and the motherland.
In order to realize her wish to "win another medal in a major event for her motherland Uzbekistan", she changed her nationality again and chose to make a second comeback, representing Uzbekistan in the Rio and Tokyo Olympic Games. But the sky was not satisfactory, and none of them won a medal.
Not long after retiring from the Tokyo Olympics, she chose to make a third comeback and continue to work hard to fulfill her unfulfilled wish.
For the Hangzhou Asian Games, Chusovykina did not dare to relax in the slightest. Before arriving in Hangzhou, she trained for up to 3 hours a day at the Tashkent gymnasium.
The reporter found that in the training platform on the evening of the 22nd, her every movement and every jump was videotaped, and then carefully reviewed with the coach to find areas for improvement.
We look forward to "Qiu Mama" performing well in the Hangzhou Asian Games competition, winning medals and realizing her wishes. For "Qiu Ma", her opponent is only herself.
Comeback after comeback again and again is supported by her love for gymnastics. Chusovikina said she loves the sport and when she comes to the ring, it feels like a fish meets water.
At the age of 48, Chusovykina also enjoys the joy of sports itself. "I enjoy training and competing more now because I realise it's something I do for myself," she said. ”
Chusovykina prepares for vaulting training Photo by reporter Tang Junyao
Q3: What are your plans for the future after leaving the arena?
In the Asian Games village, the reporter met Uzbek journalist Dinala. She will spend more than 20 days in Hangzhou to cover the entire Hangzhou Asian Games.
"She's a great athlete!" When reporters talked to her about Chusovykina, Dinara did not hide her joy and described Chusovykina's popularity in Uzbekistan as "very, very popular".
As Dinara said, Chusovykina is great: her love for her son is great, her dedication to gymnastics and her contribution to the sport of gymnastics is great, and her love for her homeland is even great.
This spirit and sentiment also touches and inspires many people. When the reporter told her that Chinese fans liked her so much that they nicknamed her "Qiu Ma", she smiled heartily. "Thank you very much for liking it." She said.
Outside of the competition, she has promoted another great thing in her home country.
Chusovykina said that in the future, her main energy will be on the gymnastics academy in her hometown of Tashkent.
The "Chusovykina Gymnastics Institute" is located on the outskirts of Tashkent, surrounded by beautiful scenery, and is one of the two sports institutes specially approved by the President of Uzbekistan. The academy is about to be officially completed, and the gymnastics teenagers she is currently training will relocate to the new academy as a whole.
Chusovykina said her academy will provide completely free education for children in Uzbekistan. "The best of them will represent our country in world-class competitions in the future."
In order to provide more operating funds for the gymnastics academy, Chusovykina and her husband still do not live in their own house. They save money in order to squeeze out every penny and invest it in the education of their children.
Whether in gymnastics or in life, Chusovykina is the pure and focused powerhouse.
Column editor-in-chief: Zhang Wu Text editor: Fang Ying Title picture source: Xinhua News Agency Data map Photo editor: Zhu Jun
Source: Author: Chao News Tang Junyao Ye Yilin Zhang Mengyue