The hardships of life became the last straw that crushed them.
On July 31, Greek weightlifter Jakovidis suddenly burst into tears in a post-match interview, crying and announcing that due to financial difficulties, he could no longer maintain his sports career.
He revealed his current situation and mentality without any concealment: he had almost no income, received only 200 euros (about 1500 yuan) a month from the sports federation to prepare for the competition, and these funds could not even be carried out normally in physical therapy, because the therapist knew that he was financially strapped and would not collect money, which hurt his dignity and made it difficult for him to bear.
Sometimes I don't even have enough money to refuel my car, so I have to walk to the training ground.
He said: "There have been so many dark moments in my career that I can't bear anymore and I want to stop and calm down, I'm tired. ”
The hardships of life became the last straw that crushed the camel, and he endured it, and the tears suddenly burst out of his eyes, making him cry in front of the whole world.
Yakovedis is just a microcosm of the world.
Success and glory have never been the main colors, and in the corners of the world where the sun cannot shine, they are full of more bitterness and suffering.
At the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympic Games, athletes from all over the world entered, and when they saw that there were only 4 people in the Iraqi delegation, they couldn't help but feel sad.
Holding the national flag, they walked quietly through the venue, their faces hanging helpless and lonely, looking so out of place in the noisy crowd around them.
The female flag bearer heard the shouts of the audience and naturally turned her head in response with a smile.
Many people say it's an "angelic laugh," but the smile goes away, revealing more bitterness and helplessness.
Today, 18 years after the 2003 U.S.-Iran war, the world seems to have forgotten that war, and even the name of the country is rarely mentioned.
The arrival of the 4-member delegation sent a silent cry to the whole world - somewhere in Asia, there is such a country, it is called Iraq, the haze of war has not dissipated, but its people have never fallen!
They came from the chaos of war, hard, but still full of hope.
As early as the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, there was an Iraqi athlete who brushed the screen.
He appeared alone on the field, without coaching guidance or anyone accompanying him, sitting alone on the sidelines at breaks drinking water quietly.
After the game, pack your bags alone and leave quietly.
His name is Yala Azad Abdul Hamid, who represents Iraq and is the only badminton player in Iraq.
He flew for more than a dozen hours, but only played for 26 minutes.
"My country is at war, but I just want to play well," he said. ”
Euthra Maldini, 23, is from Syria and was part of a refugee delegation at the Tokyo Olympics.
The 29-member team, with members from more than 10 different countries, in addition to Iraq and Syria, as well as Afghanistan, Iran, Congo, Sudan and so on, are all in war and turmoil.
His father was a swimming coach, and Maldini began learning to swim with his father at the age of 4.
But the war disrupted her otherwise peaceful life, and the bomb attacks that could come at any time shrouded the entire city in tension and panic.
"Am I really alive?" This is something that Maldini often ponders.
In 2012, Maldini's home was destroyed in a bombing raid, followed by a bomb tearing through the roof of the training center where she was located, and she watched two swimmers die instantly.
Since then, she has begun to live a life without a fixed home.
In 2015, Maldini had to flee his homeland to Germany.
Only 7 people were allowed to ride in a rubber boat, and they squeezed up more than 20 people and crossed the vast Mediterranean Sea.
The severe overload stopped the rubber boat's motor from working, and in a life-and-death situation, Maldini and his sister, as well as two other companions, jumped into the icy waters and pushed the rubber boat forward while swimming.
They pushed the boat for 3 and a half hours, and finally arrived at the shore, saving more than 20 lives of the ship.
UNHCR wrote a tweet about Maldini's story:
To push a sunken ship to safety, Eusla Maldini swam in the middle of the sea for 3 and a half hours. And now, she swims for every refugee in the world. ”
Once ashore, Maldini embarked on a long journey through Macedonia, Serbia and Hungary.
But people are not friendly to refugees.
Since most means of transport refused to carry refugees, they walked for several days, sleeping in fields or churches.
Even when they bring money, taxis refuse to park for them, and restaurants often refuse to serve them.
In a refugee camp in Berlin, Maldini shares a tent with six companions, but she always smiles no matter what problems she faces.
When the policeman who stopped them asked her why she was laughing, Maldini replied simply and firmly: "We almost died in the sea, and now we are afraid of you?" ”
Life kisses me bitterly, but I often sing in return. This is probably Maldini's attitude towards life.
At the Tokyo Olympics, Maldini's performance was not outstanding - the women's 100m butterfly preliminaries, 1 minute 06.78 seconds, did not qualify for the final.
But she doesn't regret it: "It's not the most important thing. I want the world to know most of all that refugees are normal people. They are people, they have dreams! ”
Yes, no matter how dark it is in front of you, as long as you have a dream, you will eventually wait for the dawn to come.
From his war-torn homeland to the Olympics to pursue his dreams, 12-year-old table tennis player Zaza Hend, the flag bearer of the Syrian delegation and the only woman in the delegation.
She is also the youngest player at the Tokyo Olympics.
She has been playing since she was 5 years old, and in her war-torn homeland, table tennis is the spiritual backbone of her and her brother.
For as long as I can remember, Zaza has not been able to go to school normally, nor can he go out to play at will, and he has to face difficulties of one kind or another every day, even the rackets and balls for training are not enough.
The power supply in the training stadium is insufficient, there are frequent power outages, there is no floor glue, no air conditioning, and a few balls down, it is sweaty.
But she asked herself to complete 6 days a week, training 3 hours a day.
"In the past 5 years, because of the war, I have experienced a lot of difficulties. But I want to send this message to all people in the same situation as me: no matter what kind of difficult situation you face, you must work hard for your dreams! ”
At the women's singles qualifiers for table tennis on July 24, Zaza ended his Olympic journey with a 0:4 defeat.
Zaza, who lost the game, was not too frustrated, she said: "Participating in the Olympics is not my ultimate goal, I hope that the little white ball in my hand can send a message of peace, and I believe that Syria will usher in peace, and at that time, more children will join my team." ”
Peace, which is so commonplace in our eyes, seems to them to be an untouchable goal and a luxury.
From them, we see the China of the past.
In Los Angeles in 1932, Chinese made his first olympic appearance.
● China's first Olympic person: Liu Changchun
Through war and suffering, the world's most populous country sent the smallest delegation of just 6 people.
Among these 6 people, 2 are staff members, 3 are overseas Chinese who have brought momentum, and there is only 1 athlete - Liu Changchun, the first person in Chinese sprinting.
● Chinese delegation to the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics (Liu Changchun, second from right)
Holding up the national flag, he walked alone through the audience of the mountain and the tsunami, announcing to the world: Olympics, Chinese is coming!
However, 3 weeks of sea turbulence, seasickness, vomiting, has long been Liu Changchun's physical strength has been greatly affected, he lost in the preliminary round, regrettably failed to qualify.
What is even more poignant is that after the game, he did not even have the travel expenses to go home, and finally returned to the motherland with the financial support of local overseas Chinese.
On behalf of the 40,000,Chinese people, he knocked on the door of the world's sports event and showed the people of the world the strong will of a nation not to be left behind and not to be humiliated.
The newspaper of the time wrote:
I am a Chinese athlete, this single knife to the meeting, thousands of miles off the mountain, at this moment the national fortune is difficult, I hope that the king will bravely move forward, so that my descendants will be far away from such suffering!
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Liu Changchun served as a sports coach and coached Dalian Institute of Technology for more than 30 years, dedicating his life to China's sports cause.
In 1983, Liu Changchun died at the age of 74.
The next year, as if it were a reincarnation, at the Los Angeles Olympic Games again, Xu Haifeng won the first Olympic gold medal for China, achieving a breakthrough of "zero" gold medals in China's Olympic history.
But the pace of progress has not stopped.
Also at the same Olympic Games, the Chinese delegation made a big splash, shooting, weightlifting, fencing, gymnastics, diving and winning 15 gold medals in a row!
The Chinese women's volleyball team led by Lang Ping also defeated the host United States team in three straight sets in the final and won the first collective project championship in China's Olympic history.
● At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Lang Ping lifted the championship trophy
That year, The Chinese athletes bravely moved forward and did their best, which was the best consolation for the ancestor Liu Changchun.
History should not be forgotten, and it is precisely because of the backbone of China that has not been crushed from generation to generation that the road to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has become broader and broader.
Today, we live in peace and prosperity, and it is difficult to put ourselves in the shoes of peace.
But do not take peace for granted.
For people in many countries, a full meal can be an unattainable luxury.
In 2021, the world is staggering in the storm of the new crown epidemic, but the problem of regional conflicts has not been diluted by the epidemic.
War, violence and persecution have displaced more than 82.4 million people worldwide.
Globally, on average, 1 in 100 people lose their homes to war.
And that number continues to grow.
In the seconds you've read this passage, somewhere in the world, there may be a few more people homeless.
Bitterness, tears, suffering, and strength.
Peace is not easy, and only when we look at the world do we know how difficult and great it is for our country to come all the way from the wind and rain.
Let's take a [like] note, our generation of young people should cherish the peaceful development environment created by our ancestors, forge ahead, and live up to Shaohua! Text/Shepherd Dragon Idler