Exclusive interview with Sister Cheyangshi, the first Tibetan Olympic champion: 33 years old, starting all over again – Sports – China Industry Network

Original title: Exclusive interview with Sister Cheyangshi, the first Tibetan Olympic champion: 33 years old, starting all over again

China News Service, Xining, November 5

China News Service reporter Yang Chengchen Zhang Tianfu Hu Guilong

Returning to Qinghai from Hangzhou with the London Olympics gold medal that was 11 years late and the Asian Games gold medal that she won, Sister Qieyangshi had a rare rest for a whole month. “At the end of this year’s season, my body is very tired, so I want to give myself some recovery time.” She is about to start training again. She recently accepted an exclusive interview with a reporter from China News Service in Xining.

This month, even when she returned home, she still received a lot of attention. She participated in various welcome activities, registered a video account and updated her status from time to time. She continued to receive interview invitations, and shot advertisements for new charity projects… And with her family Reunion is one of the most important things. Facing the camera, she is still the shy and cautious Tibetan girl from the pastoral area.

Sister Qeyangshi is the first Tibetan athlete to win an Olympic gold medal, but she is still shy in front of the camera.Photo by China News Service reporter Xue Di

The first Tibetan Olympic champion

“In my hometown, everyone lined up on horseback to welcome me, which was really shocking. In our pastoral area, this is the highest etiquette. I enjoyed this shining moment. At that moment, I felt that everything was worth it; but I also I’m afraid that I won’t be able to bear it, which may reveal a different kind of responsibility to my hometown,” she said.

Sister Qeyangshi won the “double gold” on October 4. This is a special day for both Chinese track and field and Chinese Tibetan athletes. The gold and silver medalists in the women’s 20-kilometer race walk at the 2012 London Olympics had their medals canceled due to doping issues. Sister Qieyangshi, who accidentally set an Asian record and won the bronze medal at the time, was confirmed as the gold medalist by the International Olympic Committee last year and won the gold medal in Hangzhou this year. Received a replacement gold medal at the Asian Games. Complex emotions such as relief and regret lingered in the veteran’s heart.

At this year’s Asian Games, on the day when the Olympic gold medal was awarded, she won her first Asian Games gold medal with an absolute advantage in the team event. The Tibetan athlete who has long been at the top of the IAAF rankings is still proving himself with his strength 11 years later.

Sister Cheyangshi’s achievements can never be defined by two gold medals: she is the first Tibetan athlete in Chinese sports to participate in the Olympics, and the first Tibetan athlete to stand on the Olympic podium. Now, she has undoubtedly become the first Tibetan athlete to win an Olympic gold medal.

“Slowly I found that my influence has become greater.”

“I have a little talent in sports.” At the elementary school sports meeting, Sister Qieyangshi found that she ran faster than her peers. She quickly realized that sports “may be a new choice in life” for her.

As the goals of each stage of the movement were achieved one by one, Sister Qieyang Shi moved from the pastoral area to the whole country, and then to the world. When she first went to a foreign country for training, differences in language, food, etc. made it difficult for her to adapt. She admitted that it was probably the strong character cultivated by her pastoral life that allowed her to persist in “coming out”.

As her results got better and better, she gradually discovered that she could influence more young people in pastoral areas, thereby improving Qinghai’s track and field results.

Today in China, there are more and more Tibetan athletes in different sports. “Seeing outstanding Tibetan athletes emerging in so many fields has become my motivation to persevere.” She hopes that athletes from pastoral areas can enjoy the highest welcome etiquette when they return to their hometowns.

She will be 33 years old on November 11, and she plans to start all over again.Photo by China News Service reporter Xue Di

33 years old, starting all over again

In the near future, she will set foot on the training ground again to prepare for the Paris Olympics.

With the changes in IAAF rules, the 35-kilometer mixed walking event in which Sister Qieyangshi won the gold medal at the Asian Games will be canceled in world events after the Asian Games. This means that she is facing another adjustment after switching from 20 kilometers to 35 kilometers a few years ago. She will turn 33 on November 11, and she said: “I plan to start all over again.”

After winning the Asian Games, she once said that the gold medal was more precious than the gold medal in the London Olympics. For people around Sister Qeyangshi, they can especially understand. The young player who was born at that time persisted for many years and endured loneliness. She was once considered to have encountered a bottleneck and would be difficult to break through. Finally, at the age of a veteran, she won a hearty victory.

“Returning to the 20-kilometer (project) is a new beginning for me.” Sister Qeyangshi said. She now also works as a part-time coach. As she gets older, her biggest problem now is not whether she can complete the training volume, but how to maintain the quality of her sleep.

She once said that it doesn’t matter whether she has a gold medal in the London Olympics or not. The championship will bring more pressure to herself. But at the awards ceremony on October 4, the audience could feel the excitement and relief from Sister Qieyangshi’s tears.

“Some people joked that the gold medal was 11 years late and I missed 100 million (RMB). But to me, money really doesn’t matter.” Now when asked again about the significance of the gold medal, she said, “Eleven years have passed. Just pretend it didn’t happen. The Olympic gold medal won’t bring much change to me, but it will be different for the young Tibetan athletes in Qinghai. The gold medal may help everyone stick to the direction.”