Xu Haifeng, who has entered the age of sixtieth, now spends unforgettable years with his dear wife in a narrow room assigned by the unit. Although the interior is simple, with an area of only a few dozen square meters, it is full of a warm and harmonious family atmosphere, which is in stark contrast to his brilliant sports achievements in the past.
Stepping into the interior of this period house, it is not difficult to find that this is a typical "unit room", although the furniture is old, but everywhere exudes a strong family flavor.
Xu Haifeng sat upright on the sofa, his eyes were slightly hazy, the traces of time were all over his cheeks, and his silver-white hair made him look even older. However, when his eyes turned to the glittering trophies and medals on the walls, his eyes flashed with pride and nostalgia.
These honors are the testimony of his sweat on the sports field and his brilliant achievements.
Although he is now old and his eyesight is not as good as before, Xu Haifeng's love for shooting has never faded. He always pays attention to the latest developments in shooting events at home and abroad, and is very pleased with the growth and progress of young athletes.
Sometimes, he also provides professional guidance and advice to some of the athletes, and unreservedly passes on the valuable experience he has accumulated over the years to the younger generations.
However, what made Xu Haifeng deeply regret and feel guilty was that at the peak of his career, due to his long-term travel to various competitions, he rarely had time to spend with his wife and daughter. Looking back on that time now, his apologies for his wife and daughter come to his heart.
Thankfully, his wife has been unwavering in her support and understanding of his career and has never had any complaints.
Earlier, in order to fully support her husband's great career, Xu Haifeng's wife resolutely gave up her high-paying position in Shougang, a well-known domestic company, and devoted herself to the family, taking care of her husband and daughter full-time.
Xu Haifeng is well aware of his wife's dedication and sacrifice, so his gratitude to his wife cannot be expressed in words.
When he was young, Xu Haifeng was a skilled shooter. At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, at the age of 27, he won the first Olympic gold medal for the Chinese shooting team with his outstanding strength and perseverance, and this historic breakthrough instantly ignited the warm cheers of the people across the country.
When I think back to that moment that I will never forget, I was so nervous that my hands were soaked with sweat and my arms trembled slightly. However, it was this tension that inspired me with courage and determination that I had never seen before. "It's now!" I thought firmly in my heart, "for the sake of our great motherland, for the dignity and honor of the motherland, I must give everything to it!"
Indeed, this gold medal not only represents China's first gold medal achievement in the Olympic arena, but also a new starting point for me personally. Just two years later, at the 1986 Asian Games, I won four gold medals in one go, successfully conquering the entire arena and becoming a legend in the field of shooting at that time. What's more, I also broke a number of world records and made new history.
However, just as my career was in full swing, a sudden vision loss hit me hard. It turned out that my eyesight had been impaired by long-term exposure to harmful substances such as fertilizers when I was working in a supply and marketing cooperative. "I thought it was a minor problem, but I didn't expect it to be so serious. I sighed helplessly.
Even so, the once skilled marksman persevered in training and competing despite his poor eyesight, doing his best to bring glory to his country in every event. Amazingly, with only 0.5 of my eyesight remaining, I won the gold medal again at the 1994 Asian Games. This is undoubtedly an awe-inspiring miracle.
However, the continued deterioration of my vision eventually forced me to make the difficult choice of retiring. "The doctor told me that if I don't get a good rest, I'm afraid that even my normal life will be affected. I said with a worried face, "Although my heart is full of reluctance, for the sake of the future, I can only choose to leave this stage." ”
Although I had to say goodbye to the competition, I never gave up my love and pursuit of shooting. Soon after I retired, I became the coach of the shooting team, and I passed on the experience I had accumulated over the years to the younger generation of athletes.
As a coach, I take care of my students as if they were my own children. During the arduous training process, I always patiently and meticulously answered their questions and inspired them to move forward with my own experience.
"As long as you do your best, you will definitely be able to achieve outstanding performance in the field of shooting sports!" Xu Haifeng always inspires his students with such inspirational words.
With his outstanding guiding ability, Mr. Xu Haifeng has cultivated many outstanding shooters, including Li Xianghong, Tao Luna and others, who have repeatedly achieved excellent results in various international competitions and have become the core strength of the Chinese shooting team.
At Atlanta 1996, she won the women's 25m pistol event with her courage and skill, while Tao Luna made history by becoming the first athlete to win gold at the event.
In the Busan Asian Games, the team commanded by Xu Haifeng won 27 gold medals with an overwhelming advantage, which is remarkable.
With his extraordinary teaching talent and high reputation, Xu Haifeng quickly rose to become a "shooting instructor superstar" at home and abroad. Whether it is other domestic teams or some internationally renowned teams, they have offered generous conditions to invite him to join.
However, the seeds of patriotism have long been planted deep in Xu Haifeng's heart, and he resolutely resisted all temptations and always served the motherland loyally.
After the Athens Olympics, Xu Haifeng, who has entered the age of 48, has devoted half his life to the shooting career, but whether it is energy or physical strength, he can no longer withstand the high-intensity training of the national team.
As a result, he was transferred by the state to the post of deputy director of the fencing centre. Although this job is relatively easy compared to his previous coaching career, Xu Haifeng's love for sports has never diminished in the slightest.
Even when he is in the office, he always keeps an eye on the dynamics of the shooting team, providing them with valuable information and experience.
Looking back on Xu Haifeng's early life, he has gradually embarked on the road of no return to shooting sports from an ordinary airsoft enthusiast. It is precisely because of his persistent pursuit of dreams that he has created brilliant achievements in the future.
In 1957, Xu Haifeng was born in an ordinary family in Fujian. From an early age, he had a special love for the sport of shooting, and his toy guns and slingshots became his closest companions.
In high school, through his unremitting efforts, he accumulated sufficient funds to buy the first airsoft gun in his life, and started a new journey.
On the occasion of graduating from high school, Xu Haifeng resolutely decided to devote himself to the life of an educated youth for four years. When he returned to his hometown, he was already an ordinary salesman in a supply and marketing cooperative. However, fate seems to be cleverly intertwined, a brand new sports school has sprung up in this quiet city, and the shooting coach has unexpectedly become Xu Haifeng's former physical education teacher.
The teacher knew that he was gifted and enthusiastically invited him to join the shooting team. In this way, 23-year-old Xu Haifeng once again picked up his beloved gun and embarked on a long and challenging shooting road.
Just a few months later, Xu Haifeng won the gold medal and two silver medals in the airsoft competition at the Anhui Provincial Games. The news was like a pebble thrown into the lake, stirring up waves in the sports world, and people praised the extraordinary strength of this young man.
For a time, he lit up the night sky of the airsoft world like a bright star, and was known as a "genius player".
In the subsequent provincial competitions, Xu Haifeng repeatedly staged thrilling counterattacks, overwhelmed the crowd with his outstanding performance, and was hailed as an invincible genius at that time. At the 1983 National Games, he won two silver medals in one fell swoop.
At this moment, the national team is also focusing on this "wizard". Soon after, Xu Haifeng was invited to join the national team.
During his days in the national team, Xu Haifeng felt pressure, but he made a vow to win glory for the country. Soon after, he was the first world-class tournament in his life, the Los Angeles Olympics.
Despite the low expectations and his lack of professional training, he managed to make a splash in this contest and win the title. Xu Haifeng, at the age of 27, became the first Chinese athlete to win an Olympic gold medal.