Stories of Chinese mainland Olympians inspire HK youth

HONG KONG, China, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- Applause and laughter filled the Jockey Club Auditorium at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, as members of the Chinese mainland Olympic delegation attended a special seminar there on Sunday, the last day of their visit to the region.

Through lively and humorous speeches, members of the delegation shared stories and insights, while also giving words of encouragement.

Table tennis Grand Slam winner Ma Long was the first to speak. When asked about his toughest opponent if he were to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics, his answer brought forth an outburst of thunderous applause.

"My biggest opponent would be the Chinese national team, as they are all so good at table tennis. In fact, I think all Chinese can play table tennis!"

Ma then shared with the audience how he persisted in achieving his goals when facing injuries.

"Only with determination and hard work you can succeed," he said.

37-year-old weightlifter Lyu Xiaojun, who became the oldest Olympic weightlifting gold medalist in history during the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, shared with the audience his secret of keeping in shape.

"Scientific training is the secret to the success in my weightlifting career," he said. To him, weightlifting training is a form of enjoyment instead of a mundane task, and he still sees the possibility to continue on his weightlifting journey.

"I might continue until I am 40 years old," Lyu added. "Don't be surprised if you see me at next year's world championships, as I might even appear at the Paris Olympics."

Swimmers Yang Junxuan, Tang Muhan, Zhang Yufei and Li Bingjie fulfilled their coach Wang Aimin's long-awaited dream when they won the women's 4x200m freestyle relay at the Tokyo Olympics.

Wang shared with the crowd the motivational words he had for his team before the race. "Miracles are created by men," he said. "As long as you work hard and perform your best, you can create miracles."

The seminar ended on a high note as Su Bingtian, China's sprint icon and Asian 100m record holder, made his speech. At the age of 32, he overcame injuries to become the first Asian to enter the 100m finals at the Olympics.

"If I am faster than the others by 0.01 seconds every day, they will never be ahead of me," he said of the belief that has been pushing him forward every time he trains.