People's Daily Online once commented on the new generation of Chinese athletes: "In the sports arena, Chinese young athletes are moving to the center of the world stage. In the competition, they were not afraid of challenges, dared to fight, and showed a formidable demeanor in the future with the belief of winning glory for the country; outside the stadium, they were confident and frank, and showed their personality to the world, showing the image of a vigorous and progressive Chinese youth. ”
Being more confident, candid, and able to highlight one's personality can be seen in Rao Jiayi, a rider of the Chinese equestrian team and a silver medalist in the Asian Games.
饶嘉怡在杭州亚运会上搭档“木法沙” ©Team Alex
Rao Jiayi partnered "Geniaal" in the team event of the dressage competition at the Hangzhou Asian Games, which was their home debut. After the game, she said: "We were like two friends together. One friend is afraid of going the dark road, and the other friend needs to hold his hand, which is a very trusting and natural gentle force. ”
I love the expression, which is full of equestrian humanism and a rider's deep thinking about equestrianism, showing the frankness and personality of this young equestrian.
The Hangzhou Asian Games is both the goal and the process
The Chinese team won the silver medal in the dressage event of the Hangzhou Asian Games, and Rao Jiayi won the sixth place individually. At the celebration banquet in Tonglu, Rao Jiayi's mother hugged her and cried into tears. There is happiness and sorrow in these tears, and it also contains a mother's natural love for her child.
Ten years ago, Rao told her parents that she wanted to become a professional dressage rider, but the family didn't agree at first. Relying on enthusiasm and perseverance, I stayed alone in the UK, and most of the time I slowly digested the pain and pain in the middle.
In order to realize her equestrian dream, Rao Jiayi chose to stay in the UK
Most people think that Rao's preparation for the Asian Games has only started in the past few years, but the achievement of winning a team silver medal in her debut at the Asian Games will never happen overnight, "Preparing for the Asian Games is actually an eight-year process, and I started trying to qualify for the Asian Games in Jakarta when I was there. Just like preparing for the Paris Olympics, I'm trying my best and treating the process as a kind of training. It is precisely because of the preparation experience of the last Asian Games that my mentality is more mature and more planned in the preparation process of this Hangzhou Asian Games."
Mufasa has a flame in his heart
Preparing for the Asian Games in Hangzhou requires a horse that complements each other. Before the Asian Games in Hangzhou, Rao Jiayi's first choice was "Mufasa" and her second choice was "Teddy". Apparently "Mufasa" is in very good form and has a lot of quality to deal with the game.
Back in April this year, Rao and "Mufasa" won the championship on the first day of the FEI International Dressage Championship in Le Mans, France, with a score of 70.49%.
After Rao Jiayi's victory, the international professional equestrian media Eurodressage commented: "This is the first time that the Chinese national anthem has been played in an international dressage competition. ” ©Les Garennes
Mufasa used to be a stallion and participated in a lot of stallion shows, and he was partnered by a Dutch rider who was a good stallion rider, Dinja van Liere. In the hands of its second owner, Alexander Helgstrand, Mufasa became a gelding. Due to the poor run-in, the character of "Mufasa" became sensitive and fiery.
Why did he choose Mu Fasa after trying out the horse, knowing that he had such a character? Because Rao Jiayi took a fancy to the flame in the heart of this horse, once he arrived at the race, he would have passion, expressiveness, and enjoy the stage.
"Mufasa" has a desire to express himself, but he is also prone to mental exhaustion ©Team Alex
"Mufasa is a horse that cannot be ridden in a tough way. He is a very hard-working horse, but at the same time very prone to internal friction. If he tries once or twice, and then tries harder a third time, and still doesn't get your encouragement and positive feedback, he will lose his temper and his CPU will burn. "Every time I talk to Rao Jiayi, I am amazed by her adjective reserves, as if you are talking to a delicate mother about her children - the eldest daughter is lively and optimistic, and the third child looks strong on the outside but fragile on the inside.
"When Mufasa first partnered with me, every time he set up, he couldn't settle down completely. Immediately after that, he would prop himself up with his mouth, and in a few moments he would move on. If you don't let him go forward, he'll get up or pull his neck down to pull the rider down. But his mind is not bad, he just can't help it, he can't bear the pressure when he can't stand still. "What Rao Jiayi has to do is try to relieve his pressure, such as letting him stand in place after training, and then communicating with the coach to let him relax. Or, when you're done, take a snack out of your pocket and reward him with a feeling of relaxation and joy in completing the action.
©Team Alex
On the first day of the dressage competition, Rao and "Mufasa" made a mistake between two diagonal steps. Rao Jiayi reviewed the moment, "Because of the first day of competition, we were all nervous. After stepping out of the diagonal step, I felt him shrink a little. At that time, I was still thinking about making an air leg swap at X o'clock, and I unconsciously increased some pressure on my legs. Mufasa felt it immediately, and he must have thought, 'Wow, what are you doing?, did I just do something wrong?' At that moment, he had an overreaction. That brought me back to reality and made me realize that the two of us needed to do the race hand in hand, rather than me figure it out and do my own thing. ”
Team Alex, a Chinese dressage team ©competing at the Asian Games in Hangzhou
On the second day of the race, Rao Jiayi was more open to the signal of "Mufasa" and completed the course in cooperation with each other. His performance in that race won the approval of many riders and even coaches of other national teams, and he went from day to day to day, and eventually won the team silver medal and finished sixth individually. However, before coming to Hangzhou, Rao Jiayi did not have any expectations, and was even worried about whether she could play normally on the court.
This result has made Jao even more determined to work hard, and she hopes to continue to enjoy the Asian Games stage like individual champion Qabil in the future, and she even hopes to become the oldest rider in the Asian Games in the future.
German rider Jessica and "TSF Dalera BB" at the World Equestrian Festival ©in Aachen CHIO Aachen
Rao Jiayi still has many wishes, "My idol is Jessica von Bredow-Werndl, she has a special temperament, I want to be a kind person like her." I want to follow in the footsteps of my idol and go to the top event, the World Equestrian Festival in Aachen."
Text/Wan Fulin
This article is excerpted from the October 2023 issue of the special issue "Breakthrough in the Asian Games"