Author 丨 Zhang Nanqian Editor 丨 Qi Fei
Yesterday, at the award ceremony of the women's 100m butterfly competition at the Tokyo Olympics, gold medal-winning Canadian Maggie Macneil had a black-haired, yellow-skinned Chinese face.
Born on February 26, 2000 in Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, China, Maggie was abandoned by her parents shortly after birth. She was adopted by a Canadian couple at the age of 1 and grew up as mayor of London, Ontario. Today, she is a student at the University of Michigan, a sought-after female swimmer, and has won medals at international competitions several times.
People are surprised by the huge transformation of the abandoned baby in Jiangxi to become an Olympic champion, and speculate about her fate if she was not adopted by her Canadian parents.
In fact, similar to Maggie's life are the National Championships gymnastics champion Iker, princeton university hockey player Aleva, the world championships gymnastics champion Morgan... Orphaned more than a decade ago, they were adopted from China and raised overseas, and now these girls not only shine in the field of sports, but also have superior knowledge, confidence and beauty. The word "abandoned baby" is no longer the background of their lives.
On July 26, Maggie became the women's 100m champion at the Tokyo Olympics
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="10" > won Canada's first Olympic gold</h1>
With a thud, Maggie leapt into the pool, first a smooth dive, then a beautiful butterfly, and the splash of water from her arms quickly receded from the sides of her body. On July 26, she won the Olympic championship in the women's 100m butterfly competition at the Tokyo Aquatics Center with a time of 55.59 seconds.
Maggie didn't lead the first 50 meters of the race, but after turning around on the wall, she only took 29.09 seconds to swim the last 50 meters – jumping from seventh place in the first half to second fastest in Olympic history. The 20-year-old from Canada also set a new American record, a full second faster than she did in the preliminaries and semi-finals.
After the swim, Maggie emerged from the water. After taking off her swimming goggles, the myopic squinted her eyes at the big screen in the distance, seemingly taken aback. "Oh my God!" She didn't expect to win the championship herself. The coach and teammates in the stands cheered, and Maggie hugged and greeted the contestants next to her.
Meanwhile, China's Zhang Yufei won the silver medal with a time of 55.64 seconds, and Australia's Emma McKean (55.72 seconds) won the bronze medal.
In this way, Maggie won the first medal for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics for Team Canada and became the first female swimmer at the University of Michigan in more than fifty years to bring an Olympic gold medal back to school.
Then, in the women's 4×100m freestyle relay, the Canadian team, including Maggie, won the silver medal with a time of 3:32.78. It was Canada's 50th Olympic medal in swimming.
Canadian swimmer at the Olympics
Maggie's impressive results are not surprising. Prior to the Olympic Games, she was already a rising star in the world of women's swimming, winning many awards in swimming competitions in the United States and around the world.
Just in May, Maggie won the 100m butterfly and 100m freestyle titles at the National College Athletic Association (NCAA) Championships when she represented the University of Michigan Swim Team.
At the FINA World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, a year ago, Maggie won the 100-meter butterfly world championship with a time of 55.83 seconds, breaking the records of the Americas and the Commonwealth. It was her first time competing in an international competition, beating her idol, world record holder Sarah Syostrom. She also won a pair of bronze medals in the 4×100m freestyle relay and medley relay, breaking two national records.
For a while, many people were asking who this empty little girl on the Wikipedia page really was. Accolades abounded with the trophies – Maggie was named Canada Swimmer of the Year and University of Michigan Female Athlete of the Year. In addition, she has received a series of honors from the American Swimming Association.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="68" > dream realization is inseparable from the support of adoptive parents</h1>
Devin Heroux, MAGgie's CBC sports news correspondent, is known to have observed that the rituals she prepared before each match included splashing herself with water 15 times and kicking the back footboard 3 times before going to the starting stage.
On the starting platform of the pool, there is a neat row of tall athletes, and when Maggie comes here, she will always sink down - she is only 169 centimeters tall, which is not dominant among female swimmers who are often one meter eight. "I've been playing against people who are taller than me, so I can only work harder than others, and that's the only way." Maggie said.
Maggie's favorite quote is "The comfort zone is fine, but staying there won't grow." Her swimming inspiration came from American swimmer Missy Franklin. Nicknamed "Female Flying Fish", the female swimmer won three gold medals at the 2011 Shanghai Swimming World Championships at the age of 16. At the 2012 London Olympics, Missy won four gold medals, breaking two world records.
After winning the Olympics, Maggie posted a photo of her 2008 on her social media account when she was 8 years old, wearing pink goggles on her chubby face and dreaming of one day competing in the Olympics.
Maggie recalls that the first time she swam was in 2008, when she wanted to compete in the Olympics, and now her dream has finally come true
Maggie began swimming at the age of 2 and competed in the London Water Club at the age of 8. In an interview with a local sports media outlet, she said her swimming path began when the family moved into a house with a swimming pool.
"My mom is a doctor, takes water safety very seriously, and at the beginning taught us to swim at home... Later, where I took swimming lessons, there was an organization similar to a swimming team, and I went in that direction, and when I reached the highest level of that project, they suggested that I compete at the London City Swimming Club. Maggie recalled.
When she was 8 years old and participated in a swimming competition for the first time, she had held a skating competition at school the day before, and Maggie accidentally fell and sprained her wrist. However, she refused to withdraw from the swimming competition, "it hurt very much, but I knew that was what I wanted to do".
Passionate about baking, sewing and traveling, Maggie also learned to play an instrument in her early years, playing the violin from the ages of 5 to 11 and playing the clarinet from the 5th to 11th grades. Later, in order to devote herself more intently to her swimming career, she stopped learning the instrument in depth. She revealed in a radio interview that she would not listen to music before the competition now, because she was afraid that the melody would get stuck in her mind and affect her swimming performance.
The realization of the dream, relying on years of unremitting efforts, is also inseparable from the company of family and coaches. According to swimmers on the same team as Maggie, Maggie's father was very supportive of her. She also has a younger sister, Clara, four years younger than her, who was also adopted by her parents from China and learned to swim and ballet with her sister.
Maggie's father, Edward Macneil, a drama teacher who loves music, and a mother, Susan McNair, a full-time doctor at the local family medical center, both have a penchant for literature and art rather than sports, but they have always been full of their daughter who loves swimming.
Maggie at a certain competition in 2019
Susan said that for years Maggie insisted on getting up early to train, and Edward was always with her. Every morning at 5 a.m., the father and daughter drink coffee in a café and then head to a local swimming pool to wait for the door to open. She herself tries to plan a schedule and make her child eat well.
When Maggie won the gold medal at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, her parents held the Canadian flag in the audience and embraced each other excitedly. Susan said that no matter how big or small the game, whenever Maggie won, Edward would burst into tears.
"I've heard before that every time my father watches me play, he tilts his body in whichever direction I swim." Maggie is also grateful for her parents' support.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="69" > on-stage champion, offstage students</h1>
There's an iconic photo of the world's fastest swimmer standing side by side at the 2019 FINA World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, with their palms open to the camera, with a message of encouragement to Rikako Ikee, a Japanese athlete with leukemia: "Rikako Ikee, never give up." ”
The three fastest swimmers in the world in 2019, passing on a message of encouragement to Rihanako Ikee in Japan
Standing on the left is Australian veteran Emma McKean, on the right is Swedish legend Sarah Sjøstrom, and the shortest in the middle is the winner of the competition, Maggie, who is only 19 years old. She became famous for her outstanding performance at the Gwangju World Championships and won the Canadian Outstanding Swimmer of the Year Award that year.
In 2018, when Maggie arrived at the University of Michigan, she was an obscure freshman, and almost no one knew who she was except her friends in Canada.
But soon, her gritty personality impressed her teammates. "Just after the first week, I was terrified by her. I was like, 'Oh my God, no one can swim so fast in the middle of the season without flinching'. Teammate Alexis Margett recalled.
Alexis remembers that Maggie was always quiet and not very communicative. But mid-season, while the players were waiting to play a game at Atlanta Airport, she first heard Maggie burst into a signature laugh. Later, they became close friends.
During training, the two girls occasionally hang out to make the exercises as fun as possible. Alexis said, "Even if training is difficult, she is the kind of person who will push you to complete the task." ”
Maggie and teammates and friends
Maggie believes that her collaboration with coach Andrew Craven at the London Water Club laid a good foundation for her next step at the University of Michigan, such as incremental strength training and underwater kicks.
Coming to college, Maggie was getting faster and faster. Finally, she will play four-time World Champion and Rio Olympic champion Sarah Syøstrom in Gwangju, South Korea. Many believe that Maggie "will fight for second place," including herself. She even said that she was a fan of Syostrom, and that playing with role models was like chasing stars. "It's cool to get a medal, I don't care what color it is."
Maggie and Sarah Syostrom at the 2019 Gwangju Swimming World Championships in South Korea
But in the game, she showed amazing explosiveness. Syostrom swam 25.96 seconds in the first 50 meters, 0.81 seconds ahead of Maggie, who was only fifth in the turn. Finally 15 meters later, Maggie began to approach Syostrom. In the end, the young girl finished the race with a time of 55.83 seconds, 56.22 seconds ahead of Sjøstrom, setting a new 100m butterfly record in the Commonwealth and the United States.
Maggie still finds it hard to believe when she looks back on the race a year later. "What I enjoy the most is that every time I swim, it's a personal best. This way I can let go of the pressure while swimming, not think about the results, and swim happily. She said.
After returning to campus, Maggie became an ordinary college student again. "I'm a super planner. I like to know what I want and plan for the future. Maggie said that after completing her undergraduate studies, she will study law or pharmacy.
Michigan has the largest fan base of American football, and the University of Michigan has also produced six-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady and nine professional football Hall of Famers. In addition, world-class swimmers such as "Flying Fish" Michael Phelps also graduated from the school.
In the fall of 2019, Maggie, who won the NCAA Championship, along with several other athletes, received the award on the college court. Maggie remembers the noise that day, and the music of the parade was very loud, but her favorite part was the live music.
In October 2019, several athletes, including Maggie, received a commendation from the University of Michigan
After that, Maggie meets passers-by on campus and is asked to take a group photo. But she felt that she was still an ordinary sophomore. "If someone says, can you tell your own story?" She doesn't say things like , 'I'm a world champion,' but starts at her roots. Friend Alexis said.
CBC reporter Devin described her as a "modest, kind, intelligent, and very good swimmer champion." After winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, a reporter asked her: "Where will you put this medal?" She replied calmly, "Probably with other medals, piled up on the shelves at home." ”
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="70" > their background color is not abandoned</h1>
Maggie's story conjures up images of Morgan Hurd, Rose Alleva, and Kara Eaker, all baby girls born in China who were abandoned by their parents and adopted by foreign couples to grow up abroad and later shine on the sports stage.
At the end of December 1991, China promulgated the Adoption Law, which allowed eligible foreigners to adopt Chinese orphans. As of 2018, more than 100,000 Chinese orphans were adopted by American families, according to data.
Ruth Eliwa is an American hockey guard who played for the Minnesota White Hats of the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL) and was named the National Western League Player of the Week.
Born in June 1992, she was adopted by an American couple after being abandoned in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, and after two terms of foster care, she was adopted by an American couple. After filling out complicated adoption records and completing a series of background checks, the couple brought them back to the United States and renamed them "Ruth."
Born in China, Ruth grew up in Minnesota and played for Princeton University, the Vanke Rays, and she currently plays for the Minnesota White Hats
Ruth is also a school bully, with a Master of Biological Sciences degree from the University of Minnesota and a Bachelor's degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Princeton University. In addition to ice hockey, she is a tennis player and has also competed in athletics for Red Wing High School. In 2020, she returned to the school she had attended as a women's tennis coach.
Like Maggie, American gymnast Kayla Icker was born in July 2002 in Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, and when she was more than one year old, she was adopted by her adoptive parents from an orphanage in Duchang County, Jiujiang, and came to Missouri to start a new life. She also has a sister named Sarah, who is also adopted.
Kayla has been a member of the U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team since 2017. In the balance beam event, she was a champion at the 2018 and 2019 Pan American Games and twice won a silver medal at the U.S. National Gymnastics Championships. In the free gymnastics event, she won the bronze and silver medals at the Pan American Games in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
Kayla was originally a substitute for the U.S. women's gymnastics team at the Tokyo Olympics, but was detected with the new coronavirus before the game
Morgan Hurd, a year older than Kayla and known as the "new sister of American gymnastics", was born in Wuzhou, Guangxi Province, in 2001, abandoned by his parents and spent his infancy in an orphanage. At the age of two, she was adopted by well-wishers from Delaware, USA. From the age of 3, Hurd began practicing gymnastics. At the age of 13, his personal gymnastics skills have reached the level of professional level 10, and he has been selected into the "Adult International Elite Level" team and officially entered the adult group.
In August 2017, she finished sixth in the all-around at the U.S. Championship and was selected for the U.S. National Team. At the World Gymnastics Championships in Montreal, Canada, the same year, the 16-year-old Hurd won the women's all-around championship with a score of 55.232, becoming the first world championship women's all-around champion born in Asia. She also won a silver medal in the individual balance beam competition.
Hurd, who was thinner than most, always wore glasses on stage, grinned open and revealed eight teeth, showing a sunny smile. She calls herself "a normal person flipping on a four-inch piece of wood" on Twitter, and in addition to her sports career, she often speaks out for public affairs such as "Stop Hating Asians."
Hurd won the prize at the 2018 Doha Gymnastics World Championships
The adoptive parents of these girls never hid their adoptive background from them and fully supported their hobbies and dreams. Although Maggie doesn't often show off about her family on social platforms, in a previous TV interview, she could see that there were many Chinese elements in her home, and the brush writing "home" was pasted on the wall.
On November 16 last year, Kayla posted a photo of her adoptive parents as an infant on social platforms, and wrote, "Without the love and support of my family, especially my parents, I would not be where I am today." I am very grateful to my parents for adopting me and for everything they have done. I really love you guys! ”
Kayla as a child
Morgan also wrote down his thoughts on his own background last November (U.S. National Adoption Month).
"Adoption had both positive and negative effects on me. I can't represent all adoptees, but many adopted children, including me, are often confused. We don't know who we really are; we know almost nothing about the past, and we don't know if what we're told is true. There is a culture in our blood that can never be known naturally. Morgan wrote, "However, I am so grateful to be who I am today." Adoption for me is a matter of choosing a family, and I can choose who I want in life. I am very grateful to them. ”
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