Among the many sports, China's achievements in table tennis, diving and swimming are very proud. In order to firmly grasp this honor in its own hands, the country has also been constantly discovering new forces, and at the same time, it is also actively training swimmers.
During this period, there was a swimming genius who attracted much attention, and he was called Yang Xu.
Just when everyone thought that he would choose the Chinese team, he firmly chose Australia and gave up China, and what he said also made the Chinese audience very chilled.
The birth of a genius is a rare gift, sometimes hard work is often not as important as talent, and Yang Xu is such a person who is equally good at talent and hard work.
His love for swimming was cultivated from an early age, and such a person would be more persistent than the later ones, because it was a childhood interest.
Yang Xu's story is like a brilliant novel, he was born in Australia, and the origin of swimming began after returning to China at the age of four.
Yang Xu's father was a Chinese businessman, his family can be said to be relatively wealthy, until the age of four, Yang Xu followed his father back to China, back to Guangzhou he was very curious about the surrounding things.
It was then that he came into contact with swimming, and it can be said that Guangzhou was the place where his dream of swimming began.
In 2017, Yang Xu represented Beijing in the National Games, which was also his first time participating in a relatively large-scale sports meeting.
Although he is a rising star, he has also won the eighth place among many professional swimmers with his own efforts.
It can be said that his swimming path began in China, and his first ranking was also in China, which is not only the motherland for him, but also the place where he sticks to his dream.
However, his choice was a big surprise, he should have entered the Chinese team logically, and after completing the results of the competition, he firmly chose to enter the Australian nationality, which is also very incomprehensible.
After becoming an Australian citizen, his career also ushered in a qualitative leap and turnaround, and he quickly won the national championships in the 50m butterfly and 50m backstroke.
Unfortunately, this honor does not belong to China.
After winning the title of two national champions, Yang Xu also continued to chase after the victory and did not dare to relax.
After two years of training, in 2019, Yang Xu won the gold medal at the World University Games in the 50m butterfly, once again proving his strength and talent in swimming competitions.
With such a high level of talent, he was also regarded as a swimming talent, and under the guidance of Australian swimmer Bobby Hurley, he began training in freestyle.
Compared to the eighth place in the backstroke, switching to freestyle was the wisest and most appropriate decision for him.
With the blessing of Bobby Hurley, in 2022, Yang Xu competed again and won the national 100m championship in the freestyle competition, which was also his first honor since switching to freestyle, making him one of Australia's fastest freestylers.
In order to fully show his strength in freestyle, Yang Xu has participated in some other events.
Unsurprisingly, he also added to his legacy, helping Australia compete in the relay at the World Championships and Commonwealth Games, and winning a medal for Australia.
The face and blood of the Chinese stand beside a group of foreigners, winning medals for other countries, in this regard, Yang Xu also said that he never considered representing China, and said that he was born in Australia, so he likes Australia, graduated from the University of Sydney, he chose Australia and gave up China.
This is also the loss of a talented swimming genius for China, although it is a pity, but it cannot influence anyone's choice.
Although Yang Xu has extremely high talent, Yang Xu's career has ushered in the biggest obstacle, his physical problems have made it impossible for him to continue in the 2023 event.
Because there was a tumor in the spinal canal that compressed the nerve, he was unable to walk for a while, so he had to choose to undergo surgery, which also made him stop at the last honor and never appeared again.
He was ready to return to the game in November '23 and had to fall into a long-term recovery and suspension again due to a torn shoulder cartilage.
For Yang Xu, a rising star, he urgently needs to fill his resume with honor, and he also urgently needs to prove himself to the world, but the golden time has been delayed by his own health problems.
In the face of such a setback, Yang Xu did not appear in the public's field of vision, but this does not mean that he gave up or retired.
After all, swimming is a sport he has loved since he was a child, and what is there not to do if he works hard and keeps working hard for what he is passionate about.
Just when the audience slowly forgot about him, he was like a resolute grass swaying again, and this time he still used his strength to prove to everyone that although he was injured, it did not affect his results.
At this year's Australian Swimming Championships, Yang Xu ranked second with a score of 48.20.
This is not easy for athletes who have undergone rehabilitation, and his perseverance has also shown the public the sportsmanship he exudes.
The results achieved after this recovery are only second to Olympic champion Chalmers, which is a very good new start.
Yang Xu is of Chinese descent, but his dedication to his career and the Australian team's swimming glory is a personal choice.
Our focus is only on the swimming competition itself, and the current Yang Xu is also aiming for the Paris Olympics, hoping that he can qualify for the Paris Olympics with his excellent results.
Although Yang Xu chose the Australian team, he did not look down on the Chinese team because of this.
An Australian reporter once dug a hole for him in an interview, but Yang Xu chose to stand on a pertinent perspective and bluntly said that he only focused on swimming.
China is where his dream began, and even if he didn't join the Chinese team in the end, he didn't wantonly smear the Australian team in order to win glory.
He completely achieved the sportsmanship that an athlete should have, not belittling or stepping on.
Resources
Xinhua News Agency New Media2019-06-03"20-year-old ushered in the flashpoint of his career, Australian Chinese swimmers will look forward to breaking through Chinese swimmers at the Universiade"
Sina Sports2019-04-13"18-year-old 400 self-impact Sun Yang, Wang Jian Jiahe's lifelong enemy is brave"
Tencent Sports2017-06-26《National Games Qualifiers 50 since Zhao Xianjian reached the top 200 mixed Zhou Min sealed》