Gong Xiangyu's family background
On a spring day in 1997, a lovely baby was born in Lianyungang City, Jiangsu Province, and she was the heroine of our story - Gong Xiangyu.
Gong Xiangyu's first cry when she came to this world opened the prelude to her destined extraordinary life.
Gong Xiangyu was born in a family full of athleticism.
Her father, Gong Xinghua, was the main player of the Jiangsu men's basketball team when he was young, and entered the public security system after retiring; Her mother, Wei Jiaping, was a member of the epee team of Jiangsu Province and became a teacher at a local sports school after retiring.
The family of two retired athletes is destined to produce outstanding sports talents.
Under the influence of such a family environment, Gong Xiangyu has shown extraordinary athletic talent since he was a child. She is growing faster than her peers and is more athletic.
The parents looked at their glittering daughter, and the pride and relief in their hearts were indescribable. They will look at each other meaningfully, as if to say, "Our daughter is going to be a great athlete."
Little Gong Xiangyu can also feel the expectations of his parents. Whenever her parents saw her running and jumping in the yard, their eyes were filled with joy. Gong Xiangyu has become the capital for his parents to show off, and the two can't help but praise their daughter's talent and intelligence to relatives and friends.
With the encouragement of his family, Gong Xiangyu gradually realized his unique athletic talent. She would hold her head high and tell her parents, "I will be your pride!" After receiving the promise of their daughter, the parents nodded and smiled heartily.
A sports family, a baby daughter, under the expectations of both parties, Gong Xiangyu's sports road has begun. Under the care of her parents, she will shine in the arena and make great contributions to the cause of the Chinese women's volleyball team.
Volleyball Enlightenment: Coach Lou Shuqing Discovers Gems
One afternoon in the second grade of primary school, Gong Xiangyu passed by the training hall after school and heard the sound of "bang bang" volleyball, and couldn't help but look around. I saw small bodies moving back and forth on both sides of the net, and the volleyball flew back and forth.
"It turns out that the school has a volleyball team!" Gong Xiangyu thought in surprise.
At this time, an old man with silver hair walked to the sidelines, beckoned to a little girl who threw himself in the air, and said earnestly: "Xiaofang, you have to pay attention to the rhythm of your footsteps, find the best position and then block the net." The little girl nodded respectfully, and the old man seemed to be the coach of this team.
"This teacher is really good at teaching, he is a master volleyball coach!" Gong Xiangyu was in awe. She couldn't take her eyes off it anymore and stood at the door of the training hall until the volleyball team finished training.
"Kid, do you want to join our volleyball team?" The old coach came over and asked with a smile. "Can I?" Gong Xiangyu was so excited that he was incoherent.
"My name is Gong Xiangyu, I am 7 years old this year, I really want to learn volleyball!" With the approval of the coach, Gong Xiangyu danced happily. "Okay, Xiangyu, you will be a member of our team from today onwards!" Lou Shuqing's eyes were full of appreciation, and he keenly captured Gong Xiangyu's superhuman talent.
Back at home, Gong Xiangyu couldn't wait to tell his mother the good news. At first, the mother was a little worried that her daughter would not be able to bear the intensity of training, but when she saw Gong Xiangyu's eager eyes, she nodded and agreed.
From that day on, Coach Lou Shuqing formulated a systematic training plan for Gong Xiangyu. She is talented and studious, and under the careful guidance of her coach, her volleyball skills have improved by leaps and bounds.
Gong Xiangyu has already learned the movements that other team members can only complete in the fifth or sixth grade.
"What a great piece of jade!" Lou Shuqing often affirmed Gong Xiangyu like this. Under his care, Gong Xiangyu's volleyball road opened gorgeously, and she also found the love of life.
At the age of 15, he became the youngest member of the national team
At the age of 15, it is the puberty of a young girl in the flowering season. For Gong Xiangyu, she ushered in the most important turning point in her life at this age.
In 2012, after layers of selection and tempering, 15-year-old Gong Xiangyu was finally selected for the Chinese national junior women's volleyball team as he wished. When Gong Xiangyu stood under the five-star red flag and wore a national brand costume, she trembled with excitement, and her heart was extremely glorious and proud.
"I will definitely cherish this opportunity and win glory for the country!" Gong Xiangyu secretly sweared. However, this opportunity did not come easily, and she impressed the coaching staff of the national team with her perseverance.
Stand out from the crowd and fight alongside the best junior athletes in the country.
In the same year, Gong Xiangyu participated in the Asian U17 Women's Volleyball Championship with the national junior team. In the face of strong opponents from all over the world, Gong Xiangyu was not afraid, she calmly exerted her strength to help the Chinese team finally win the championship.
A year later, she won the U18 World Women's Volleyball Championship with her teammates again, winning the double title.
The outstanding performances in two important tournaments proved that the national team coaching staff did not look at the wrong people. 15-year-old Gong Xiangyu has already made many miraculous achievements in various youth competitions.
She has become more and more determined to win gold for the country, and proved with her own strength that the future of the Chinese women's volleyball team can be entrusted to our generation of young players.
With the care and encouragement of his parents and coaches, Gong Xiangyu has smoothly entered the fast lane. She will continue to maintain a modest and cautious attitude, and continue to hone her skills and awareness, in order to bloom her youth and brilliance on the main stage at a higher level.
At the age of 19, she became the youngest Olympic champion of the Chinese women's volleyball team
On August 6, 2016, the women's volleyball final of the Rio Olympics was played at the Maracanã Stadium. When the Chinese team stood in the familiar northern half and was ready to start, a short-haired girl wearing the No. 9 jersey caught the attention of the audience - she was 19-year-old Gong Xiangyu, the youngest member of the Chinese team.
The Rio Olympics are just around the corner, but Gong Xiangyu is not surprised, but shoulders heavy pressure. Originally, in Coach Lang Ping's selection plan, she had to stay for another two years before she could be selected for the national team.
However, the main response Zeng Chunlei was troubled by injuries, and Lang Ping had to replenish his combat strength in advance and recruit Gong Xiangyu into the team.
"Do I have the strength to meet the requirements of the national team?" Will I be able to take on the responsibility of bringing glory to my country?" All kinds of doubts lingered in his heart, and Gong Xiangyu was so nervous in the face of the first Olympic battle that his palms were sweating.
Just when Gong Xiangyu was extremely anxious, her teammates and coaches gave her great support. "You're the choice of the coaching staff to let them see your potential. Teammates gently reassured, "As long as we play our strength, we will definitely achieve good results!" Coach Lang Ping also patted Gong Xiangyu on the shoulder and encouraged her to cheer up and fight side by side with her teammates.
In the first game against the Netherlands, Gong Xiangyu scored a total of 18 points, but the Chinese team still lost 2:3. "It's my responsibility!" Gong Xiangyu blamed himself until he cried. "We still have a chance, keep up the good work!" Coach Lang Ping's words gave her confidence.
In his mother's words of encouragement "the coach trusts you", Gong Xiangyu rekindled his fighting spirit.
From the second game, Gong Xiangyu gradually got better, and the Chinese team also turned from the initial losing streak to a big counterattack. In the final against Serbia, Gong Xiangyu contributed 15 points and assisted Zhang Changning to score a game-high 24 points.
The Chinese team won 3:1 and successfully defended the title, and Gong Xiangyu also became the youngest Olympic champion in the history of the Chinese women's volleyball team at the age of 19.
When the five-star red flag flew in the sky at the Maracanã Stadium, Gong Xiangyu burst into tears. "We did it!" She meditated in her heart. At this moment, all the efforts have been rewarded, and all the unpromising have come to naught.
Restart after technical bottlenecks
The glory of the Rio Olympics did not make Gong Xiangyu immersed in joy. A new season has arrived, and she has ushered in a dark period of technical bottlenecks and mistakes one after another.
Gong Xiangyu, who is only 20 years old, is still immature in experience and consciousness. After the highlight moment, she inevitably fell into confusion and self-doubt, and her state was not as good as before.
Obviously, there are excellent genes flowing in his body, but he still makes frequent mistakes at the key match point, and Gong Xiangyu is so anxious that he secretly sheds tears.
"Am I really not as good as I should be?" Gong Xiangyu asked the coach distressedly, his eyes full of self-blame and uneasiness. "It's an overkill that every athlete goes through.
The coach reassured her, "It's important to keep faith and believe that you can get out of this situation.
"Xiangyu, we are all a family, as long as we are united, there is no hurdle that cannot be passed!" His teammates also gave Gong Xiangyu warm encouragement. Only then did she regain her confidence and make up her mind to hone her skills and transform into an all-round receiver.
As a result, Gong Xiangyu began to constantly hone his ability to receive the ball, making the smash more stable and the defense more comprehensive.
With the support of his family and teammates, Gong Xiangyu gradually regained his form and became the core figure of the national team. The sinking of the former trough has made her will stronger and her skills more and more proficient.
Equipped with a new weapon, Gong Xiangyu is waiting for the next opportunity to return to the arena and show the world his peak state.
Tokyo test under the new crown epidemic
In 2020, a new crown epidemic swept the world, changing the fate of many athletes. The Tokyo Olympics, originally scheduled for this year, had to be postponed to 2021.
This is even worse for many veterans who are at the peak of their careers.
Zeng Chunlei is one example of regret. She is the dominant successor of the Chinese women's volleyball team and wanted to finish the last battle at the Tokyo Olympics. However, the postponement of the schedule led to a decline in form, and she had to choose to announce her retirement on the eve of the Tokyo Olympics.
At this time, the team responded to the girder, and it fell on Gong Xiangyu's shoulders alone. The departure of her predecessors made her feel extremely heavy, but as the successor of the new generation, Gong Xiangyu knew that she must stand up and take on the future of the Chinese women's volleyball team.
In July 2021, under the expectant eyes of his teammates, Gong Xiangyu came to Tokyo with the Chinese women's volleyball team. At the opening ceremony, Gong Xiangyu entered the venue with the national flag in his hand, his expression was solemn, but his heart was full of enthusiasm.
This is her second Olympic Games, and she has a perfect relay for Zeng Chunlei.
However, the reality is harsh. The Chinese team lost consecutive defeats in the group stage and finished only fifth. Gong Xiangyu couldn't change the overall situation, so he could only accept the result with red eyes.
"I know it's a blow to you.
Lang Ping's words woke up Gong Xiangyu. Yes, Tokyo is not the end, and the next Olympics awaits her.
Mother's support and expectation
In Gong Xiangyu's extraordinary women's volleyball career, her mother Wei Jiaping has always been her strongest backing. At every important moment, her mother gave Gong Xiangyu timely encouragement to help her correct her mentality and overcome one difficulty after another.
When she was in elementary school, her mother gave up the idea of letting her daughter change to high jump and fully supported Gong Xiangyu's love for volleyball; At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, his mother's words inspired 11-year-old Gong Xiangyu's dream of participating in the Olympics...... So far, the red thread between mother and daughter has never been broken.
At the 2016 Rio Olympics, when Gong Xiangyu blamed himself and cried after losing the first game, the mother understood her daughter's anxiety, and she gently advised: "The coach believes in you, and you must also believe in yourself." The simple words calmed Gong Xiangyu's heart and made her regain her fighting spirit.
A few years later, when Gong Xiangyu encountered a technical bottleneck and fell into deep self-doubt, his mother gave encouragement on the phone: "We all believe in you, you will definitely return to the top!" Mother's trust became the driving force for Gong Xiangyu to start again.
Today, Gong Xiangyu is a 23-year-old mature women's volleyball player. At the end of each season, she would go through the crowds and be the first to hug her mother, who was waiting at the finish line.
"Mom, I'm back again. The daughter's immature voice has changed to a calm woman's tone, but her attachment to her mother has never changed.
"Good boy, you've grown up. The mother looked at her daughter wearing a red armband with emotion, and her eyes were intertwined with expectation, pride, and melancholy. She knows that her daughter's future is far more than that, and a new journey awaits her.
What we expect from Gong Xiangyu
Time flies, and in a blink of an eye, Gong Xiangyu has been playing for the Chinese women's volleyball team for 8 years. From a 15-year-old rookie to a 23-year-old league veteran, she has witnessed the ups and downs of the Chinese women's volleyball team and has grown into a high-profile core of the new generation.
Now, the new Olympic goals have been revealed – Paris 2024 is just around the corner!
Standing at a new starting point, Gong Xiangyu chose to embrace the challenge. With the encouragement of her mother and mentor, she redressed and started anew with a new attitude. We know that the new journey is not destined to be smooth sailing, and she will go through all kinds of trials.
However, this time, Gong Xiangyu is no longer the little girl who needed encouragement from others. She has grown into a solo player with a balanced mindset and strong quality.
Gong Xiangyu, who is ready to go, the brave Chinese women's volleyball team, we will continue to support you.