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The golden light transmitted from the outside gently caressed Zhou Xiaolan's mature face that had been precipitated by the vicissitudes of life. At this moment, she stands alone in front of the floor-to-ceiling glass window of her home, gazing affectionately at the picture of the dead leaves dancing gently outside the window, her eyes slightly closed, and her memories play in her mind like an old movie - that was her golden age.
In 1981, Zhou Xiaolan, a young woman who was only 24 years old, was fortunate to fight with outstanding mainland athletes Lang Ping and Yang Xilan, and their heroic posture shone on the battlefield of the Women's Volleyball World Cup, and finally realized the magnificent dream of winning the world championship for the first time in the history of Chinese women's basketball! The people of the whole country cheered and expressed their pride, and volleyball set off an unprecedented upsurge on the mainland.
At the scene of the game, Zhou Xiaolan relied on her excellent blocking skills to accurately block every attack of the opponent, and cooperated with the "Iron Hammer" Lang Ping tacitly to create an insurmountable "best partner" defense line. Her outstanding performance won the reputation of "Tiananmen City Wall" and became a strong fortress in the hearts of the people at that time to defend the honor of the country.
In the 1982 World Championships and the 1984 Olympic Games, the Chinese women's volleyball team won three consecutive championships and became a heroic model in the hearts of the people of the whole country. Zhou Xiaolan's delicate appearance also attracted much attention at that time, she once appeared in the same frame with the famous movie star Gong Xue, and her style was not inferior to that of popular stars.
However, when recalling those glorious years, Zhou Xiaolan's eyes seemed a little dull.
In fact, Zhou Xiaolan's relationship with volleyball can be described as a coincidence. She was born into a family of intellectuals in 1957 and became barren and monotonous when her parents moved to a remote and impoverished mountain village in Shanxi Province when she was 13 years old.
At the age of 16, the tall Zhou Xiaolan was unexpectedly assigned to the volleyball class of a local amateur sports school. When she first got into volleyball, she didn't know anything about the sport and even mistakenly thought she would join the basketball team. However, when she first came into contact with volleyball, she was immediately fascinated by it and became intrigued.
Amazingly, after only a few months of professional training, Zhou Xiaolan has shown amazing talent. Under the careful guidance of her coach, she was able to quickly comprehend and perfectly interpret a variety of difficult movement techniques. She had unwavering perseverance, never took a step back no matter how tough the training she faced, and soon made her mark on the volleyball team and was hailed as a "talented player".
What is astonishing is that Zhou Xiaolan, a rural girl from a poor background who had nothing to do with the volleyball court, stood out after just a few months of professional training and quickly rose to become a new star in the mainland volleyball world.
Dating back to 1977, the ambitious Zhou Xiaolan resolutely bid farewell to her homeland and went to Brazil to win the runner-up for the Chinese youth women's volleyball team, a feat that attracted great attention from the national team.
Just two years later, in 1979, at the age of 20, Zhou Xiaolan was fortunate enough to join the ranks of the national team and start the career she had always dreamed of. At that moment, she was so excited that she couldn't sleep all night, full of endless expectations for winning honor for her motherland.
Since then, Zhou Xiaolan has devoted herself to training, and with her perseverance, she has honed her superb skills, keen insight and quick reflexes, and has become the hardest working member of the national team.
On November 16, 1981, the whole country was nervously awaiting the results of the Women's Volleyball World Cup final broadcast live on TV screens. When the host excitedly announced: "The Chinese team wins!" The Chinese team defeated the Japanese team 3-2 and successfully won the World Cup! At that moment, the whole country instantly fell into jubilation.
This is not only the first time that China's three major ball games have won the world championship in an international competition, but also pushed the mainland's sports industry to a new peak, making the world look at our strength with admiration.
This exciting news was like a blazing torch, which instantly ignited the pride and passion of all the people, and volleyball set off an unprecedented craze in the country, and the spiritual outlook of the whole society was greatly improved.
As an outstanding contributor to this great victory, Zhou Xiaolan showed impeccable and extraordinary blocking skills in the competition, winning the reputation of "Tiananmen City Wall".
She cooperated with "Iron Hammer" Lang Ping tacitly and formed the "best partner" who made the opponent helpless.
In the 1982 World Championships and the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, the Chinese women's volleyball team continued its glory, beating the crowd three times in a row and reaching the top of the world, achieving a proud record of "three consecutive championships".
As a result, Zhou Xiaolan and her teammates have become the pride of the people of the whole country and are known as the brightest stars and role models in the new era.
In that era, Zhou Xiaolan was famous all over the country for her unique charm and fresh and refined temperament. She was even fortunate to be on the cover of the magazine with the well-known movie star Gong Xue, whose tenacious facial features and heroic eyes on the side were not at all under the popular stars, making her an emerging idol in the minds of many young people.
However, it is such a glorious image that is brewing behind her difficult choices to make in the future and a new chapter in her life......
Although in 1985, Zhou Xiaolan tied the knot with national men's volleyball player Hou Xiaofei and entered a happy family life, she did not stop because of this. She knew that her peak form on the volleyball court had begun to decline, and her physical condition was deteriorating, so in order not to affect her young teammates, she had to choose to retire after the glory of "three consecutive championships" and bid farewell to her beloved court.
After leaving the identity of an athlete, Zhou Xiaolan did not give up her love for volleyball. Under the careful guidance of her husband, she decided to continue to dedicate herself to the revitalization of volleyball in the motherland on the new stage of the National Sports Commission.
In 1988, the former volleyball queen unexpectedly joined the National Sports Commission as the director of the volleyball department, once again shouldering the important task of reviving the glory of the Chinese women's volleyball team.
However, in the days that followed, Zhou Xiaolan faced great challenges. As an "old" newcomer, she was first involved in decision-making and management work, and often felt at a loss when faced with complex matters.
What's even more worrying is that the overall strength of the new generation of players is obviously not comparable with the glorious period she once played in, the women's volleyball team's record has been declining year by year, coupled with batches of veterans retiring and leaving the team one after another, the former glory of the Chinese women's volleyball team seems to be gradually fading.
For Zhou Xiaolan, witnessing the glory of her own era gradually came to an end, her heart was undoubtedly full of loss and self-blame. She tried her best to find a strategy to recreate the glory of the "five consecutive championships", but she was always helpless.
At this critical moment when the whole people are paying attention to the ups and downs of the Chinese women's volleyball team, more and more people are eagerly looking forward to and deeply dissatisfied, and at the same time, doubts and suspicions are emerging like rolling waves. Some people with bad intentions even saw the needles and launched sharp criticisms of the General Administration of Sports of the mainland, and Zhou Xiaolan, who was in a leading position, naturally fell into the core of this storm, and she had to fight alone day and night, bearing extremely heavy mental pressure.
To add insult to injury, at this critical juncture, her former partner, Lang Ping, the "iron hammer" who once fought side by side, chose to cross the ocean and go to the United States to serve as a coach, turning into a competitor for the Chinese women's volleyball team.