Translator: dapotaturs
Release Date: 09/18/2023
Chapter 123: High Jump Twin Stars & High Jump Final (Part 1)
After the morning session of the competition ended, domestic media took advantage of the lively discussions on the internet to summarize the events of the morning of April 17th.
In addition to these summaries, domestic media also engaged in some speculation and preview regarding the evening's competitions. Naturally, the focus of this speculation was the showdown between Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao.
In the realm of various sports disciplines, it's rare to find an athlete without a rival. In China, the media often likes to label athletes with similar abilities as "twin stars" or use terms like "dueling stars" and "triumvirate" to describe their competitions when they face off against each other.
In the world of track and field, the most famous twin stars in recent years are undoubtedly Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao.
Before Ye Wenhao emerged, Wang Shen had been the sole shining star in the athletics scene. However, once Ye Wenhao burst onto the scene, their performances became highly competitive, with each striving to outdo the other. About a year before the Asian Athletics Six-Nation Championship this year, Wang Shen's form dipped, and he consistently lost to Ye Wenhao in the final stages of races, earning him the nickname "eternal second."
However, after this year's Asian Athletics Six-Nation Championship, Wang Shen seemed to break free from the "critical moment mistakes" curse that had haunted him. His personal best in outdoor high jump soared from 2.28 meters to 2.30 meters, and in international indoor athletics meets, his indoor personal best even surpassed his outdoor record, reaching a height of 2.32 meters, tying the national indoor high jump record.
As Wang Shen's performances improved, Ye Wenhao also achieved breakthroughs in his results. Currently, both Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao have cleared heights exceeding 2.32 meters in high jump, making it impossible to determine who has the upper hand.
These two athletes have a sense of destiny and rivalry on the field, refusing to give in to each other. The media has depicted their competition as a tale of fate and entanglement. Some have even written articles to educate the public about the intricate story between Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao, portraying their rivalry as so intense that one might mistake them for star-crossed lovers in a battle of love and hate.
Ye Wenhao's personality is quite similar to that of Qiu Wen, who was already seated on the bus heading to the competition in Doha during the late afternoon. He was gleefully playing with his phone when he climbed over his seat, turned around, and handed his phone to Wang Shen.
"Hey, Lao Wang, take a look at this!"
Wang Shen was also casually scrolling through his phone when he saw Ye Wenhao extending his phone towards him. On the still-lit screen was a convoluted article titled 《Asian Athletics Championships: Duel of the Twin Stars———Whose Victory Will Fate Favor?》
Seeing the title of the article, Wang Shen burst into laughter. He casually skimmed through the article, which portrayed them as rivals who couldn't stand each other, almost as if they were leaders of opposing factions in the national team, ready to brawl upon meeting.
Wang Shen didn't have much interest in such a small article, and he hadn't noticed that Ye Wenhao was actually interested in reading these peculiar pieces. The thought crossed his mind briefly, and he handed the phone back to Ye Wenhao.
"Not bad writing," Wang Shen said, his face filled with a warm smile.
"You think it's well-written too, right?" Ye Wenhao seemed quite satisfied, taking his phone back and sitting down. Just as he was about to turn away, he glanced back at Wang Shen with a mischievous smile. "Lao Wang, after today's competition, the reporters will surely write a bunch of stuff. I'll share them with you later!"
...
?
Upon hearing Ye Wenhao's words, Wang Shen's perfect friendly smile froze for a moment.
Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao had only really interacted for the past two years. Last year, he had spent a long time with the athletics team in S Province, and most of his energy was focused on controlling his own performance. He hadn't paid much attention to what kind of personality his old rival had.
Previously, Wang Shen had only thought that Ye Wenhao was a bit reckless during competitions, and their relationship wasn't particularly close off the field. This was the first time Ye Wenhao had handed these things to him to look at.
For a moment, Wang Shen felt that Ye Wenhao's personality deviated quite a bit from his expectations.
However, differences were just differences, and Wang Shen didn't pay much mind to it. But then, when he picked up his phone and resumed scrolling, he suddenly received an @ mention. He clicked on it to find that the person who had @'ed him was Ye Wenhao. Oh right, the two of them were teammates, and they followed each other on Weibo.
As a result, Wang Shen saw the Weibo post that @'d him, and it read:
High Jump·Ye Wenhao: 【[Grinning face with smiling eyes]^0^ Just saw this article, @WangShen said, "Not bad." [Quoted article: Asian Athletics Championships: Duel of the Twin Stars———Whose Victory Will Fate Favor?], and I think it's not bad too~~~】
...
...
...
?
Wang Shen looked at this @ mention and then glanced at the hundreds and thousands of replies that instantly exploded under Ye Wenhao's retweet. Even his usual perfect fox-like smile seemed to crack.
He saw a comment where a netizen replied:【@High Jump·Ye Wenhao, @WangShen, Ye Bro, Shen Bro, I didn't expect you guys to be like this, Ye Bro and Shen Bro.】
Wang Shen could only raise his hand to rub his forehead. He also wanted to ask, "Ye Wenhao, I didn't expect you to be like this."
Because of Ye Wenhao's @, Wang Shen had to go all in and retweet the article. He added a smiling face and commented: 【^^Indeed, not bad.】
With this retweet and the playful words exchanged earlier by Ye Wenhao, it seemed like the two of them were openly indicating their good relationship, rather than the mutual disdain portrayed in the article. It almost felt like they were publicly clarifying that they weren't actually hostile to each other.
Soon, the sports influencer who wrote the article came forward, claimed the article, and publicly apologized to Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao, stating that a significant portion of the content regarding their relationship in the article was subjective speculation by the author.
This unexpected twist in the story provided some entertainment for athletics enthusiasts surfing the internet just before the evening's Asian Championships matches began.
When the bus arrived at the Doha Stadium, Ye Wenhao shrugged his shoulders and looked at Wang Shen with some confusion. He muttered, "I said the journalist's article was well-written. Why did they end up apologizing on our Weibo?"
Wang Shen paused for a moment and then smiled, saying, "I'm not entirely sure either."
Hearing Wang Shen's response, Ye Wenhao shrugged his shoulders and chuckled heartily. "Well, let's not worry about it. But, old Wang, even though we have a good relationship, I won't be taking it easy on you in the upcoming match!"
"Hmm?" Wang Shen glanced at Ye Wenhao and replied with a smile, "Funny, I was thinking the same thing."
The two of them exchanged a smile at the drop-off point and then gave each other a high-five before heading to the warm-up area of the stadium.
Tonight's competition was of great importance to the local Qatari audience as well. Qatar's own high jump athlete, Abdallah, known as the "Qatari Light," would also be competing tonight.
Although Abdallah finished third in the early-year Asian Six Nations Athletics Invitational, losing to Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao, he had made significant progress in his training. In Qatar's high jump competitions this year, Abdallah had already achieved an impressive 2.30 meters.
Additionally, Abdallah's coach mentioned that during training, Abdallah had even cleared 2.34 meters, and he continued to improve. If he maintained his excellent form for the year, he had a good chance of aiming for a height of 2.35 meters during the annual season.
According to Abdallah's coach, Abdallah had previously cleared 2.34 meters, a performance that, if achieved in an official competition, would have placed him in the top seven for the annual rankings last year. Even without the 2.34 meters, his 2.30-meter performance had already equaled the best result of the 2019 outdoor season.
Because Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao had cleared the 2.30-meter height in the Asian Six Nations Athletics Challenge, it was considered an official event. Therefore, tonight's men's high jump event featured three athletes with the world's best performance for the current year.
In addition to Wang Shen, Ye Wenhao, and Abdallah, there was also Japan's Tomoaki Yamashita, who had cleared 2.28 meters this year, and Ghazwan Jihani from Syria, who had achieved an excellent result of 2.29 meters in the current year's competitions.
In reality, tonight's high jump competition promised to be a fierce battle among these top athletes.
High jump competitions take a relatively long time due to athletes taking turns to attempt jumps, starting from the height set by the judges and progressing to higher heights. Because of this, TV broadcast cameras are not always focused on the high jump event.
Typically, the live broadcast at the event venue starts with other track events, and during breaks in the track events, they cut to footage of the high jump competition. It's only when the high jump competition reaches its critical stages that a significant portion of the live broadcast is dedicated to it.
Tonight's live broadcast followed this pattern as well. However, there was a slight variation. The television broadcast by the sports channel continued as usual, while the network livestream provided a separate, uninterrupted feed for the high jump competition. The only drawback was that there was no dedicated commentary for this livestream, so viewers who wanted commentary still had to watch the television broadcast.
But then again, many athletics enthusiasts are more interested in watching the competition itself rather than the commentary. In these livestreams without commentary, the chat rooms were buzzing with comments from viewers, and amateur commentators were emerging to provide their own take on the events, adding a different layer of fun to the experience.
Shao Minyi and Li Sen also had a straightforward approach. At the start of the evening's broadcast, they smilingly explained that this was how the broadcast was arranged. Viewers who wanted to watch the high jump competition in its entirety could go to the online livestream. If they found the competition hard to follow without commentary, that was okay too. After these two days of live broadcast, they would provide a dedicated commentary for these events without commentary. Then, viewers could watch the enhanced version of the commentary.
To be honest, the sports channel's approach was well-received by viewers. While some viewers wanted to watch the high jump livestream, they weren't as knowledgeable about athletics as die-hard fans, and after a while, they found it challenging to understand all the nuances. Ultimately, they switched back to the television broadcast, keeping an eye on the high jump progress on their phones or computers while listening to Shao Minyi and Li Sen's commentary on TV.
In tonight's men's high jump final, a total of 12 athletes qualified for the final. Apart from Wang Shen, Ye Wenhao, Abdallah, Yamashita Tomoaki, and Jihani, there were also many other talented athletes among the remaining participants.
After the referee announced the start of the competition, the initial height for the high jump was set at 2 meters.
Once the height measurement official had raised the bar to 2 meters and ensured its accuracy, the referee began the first round of inquiries to the athletes.
"At a height of 2 meters, does anyone choose to attempt the jump?"
In the waiting area, the 12 athletes looked at each other, and none of them stepped forward. For the first attempt at a height of 2 meters, all of them opted not to jump.
On the domestic sports channel's online livestream, there were also some new track and field fans watching high jump for the first time. When they saw the bar set at 2 meters and no athlete attempting the jump, they couldn't help but look puzzled.
【What's going on? Is no one attempting this height? Is it too high to clear?】
At this point, the number of viewers at the livestream was relatively low, and the chat comments were sparse, so this question stood out prominently.
Soon, enthusiasts who were specifically watching the high jump event here provided an answer with a smile.
【Not at all, this is for a better performance in the later stages of the competition.】
【In the high jump event, every jump consumes a considerable amount of energy. The athletes on the field have already made it to the Asian Championship high jump finals. They are all top high jumpers in Asian men's high jump. There's no need to expend energy on these initial attempts at 2 meters.】
【If every athlete clears the 2-meter jump, not only would the competition seem endless, but the athletes' performances would likely suffer. Just think about it, if they've already exhausted their energy on jumps at 2 meters and 2.05 meters, how can they expect to challenge 2.30 meters later on?】
The veteran high jump fans provided an answer to the previous question, but it raised new questions for some viewers.
【Wait? If that's the case, why did the referee set the starting height so low? It seems like all the athletes would choose to skip these initial heights, right?】
【Not exactly. Choosing the starting height for the jump is part of the athletes' strategy. It's not as simple as starting with the highest height directly—what if they can't clear it? You can't just forfeit your performance, right? Moreover, starting with appropriate heights helps athletes gradually adjust their competitive state in this competition...】
In the online livestream dedicated to high jump, there were both newcomers who were initially confused by the competition and enthusiastic long-time fans. For a moment, it was a harmonious exchange of questions and answers.
In the television broadcast of the competition, after a segment of commentary by Shao Minyi and Li Sen, the camera cut to the high jump event. It was at the moment when all the athletes chose to skip the initial height, and the referee raised the bar height to 2.05 meters, once again asking if anyone would attempt the jump.
Shao Minyi and Li Sen naturally explained the strategy behind athletes choosing whether to skip in the early stages to the viewers in front of the TV. Their explanation aligned with what the experienced fans in the livestream chat had said. This led to a round of applause and appreciation from the livestream audience.
While 2.05 meters was not a high height, two athletes, Adnan from Malaysia and Lee Deok-hee from South Korea, chose to attempt the jump at this stage. Their skills ranked in the middle to lower range among the finalists, and attempting the jump at this stage was likely to secure them a safe result.
Despite the 2.05-meter height, both Adnan and Lee Deok-hee easily cleared it on their first attempts, while the remaining athletes continued to skip.
After this round, the head referee quickly raised the bar to 2.10 meters. It was clear that the head referee had an understanding of the athletes' abilities, but setting the starting height lower was also a strategic choice to accommodate those who might want to attempt lower heights without disrupting the overall flow of the competition.
With the bar now at 2.10 meters, more athletes chose to attempt the jump. Out of the 12 athletes present, seven opted to attempt the jump, while the remaining five still chose to skip. These five athletes included Wang Shen, Ye Wenhao, Abdallah, Yamashita Tomoaki, and Ghazwan from Syria.
The other athletes in the field glanced at the five who chose to skip but didn't make any comments. Everyone had different confidence levels and strategies for the competition. Some believed they could clear the higher heights, while others focused on performing well in the lower height attempts.
Quickly, all seven athletes attempting the jump at 2.10 meters succeeded effortlessly.
At this point, out of the 12 athletes on the field, only Wang Shen and the other four still had no results. The remaining athletes had cleared at least 2.10 meters in their attempts.
After the athletes who chose to attempt the jump at 2.10 meters finished their trials, the head referee signaled once again. This time, the bar was raised to a height of 2.15 meters.
This height was only 1 centimeter below the qualification line of 2.16 meters for the men's high jump final at the Asian Championships. At this height, some athletes already had serious expressions on their faces. While there were competitors like Wang Shen and Abdallah who didn't consider heights below 2.15 meters as a challenge, there were others who found it difficult to clear this height.
This time, at the height of 2.15 meters, no athlete chose to skip. Wang Shen and the other four, for the first time in the competition, officially entered the trial jump.
The jumping order remained the same, with Wang Shen going first. After receiving the referee's signal, he made a simple warm-up. When the timer started, he smoothly accelerated from the starting line in the run-up area. With an eight-step approach, he arrived at the takeoff board in front of the bar. With his takeoff leg, he pushed off the ground, converting the horizontal force from his approach into a vertical force. At the moment of takeoff, he swung his arms backward vigorously, utilizing the force of the arm swing and the upward push from the ground. All these movements allowed him to clear the bar effortlessly. After landing, he quickly got up, smiled casually, and left the landing area.
The bar between the two uprights stayed firmly in place, without any disturbance.
In the spectator stands, Jiang Wentao and others had shifted their attention to the high jump area after Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao applied for the trial jump. Although the 2.15-meter height posed no challenge for Wang Shen and his peers, they still applauded with smiles when they saw his effortless success.
Following Wang Shen, Abdallah, Yamashita Tomoaki, Ghazwan, and Ye Wenhao also smoothly cleared the bar on their first attempts.
In the commentator's booth, Shao Minyi and Li Sen shifted their focus to the high jump at the right time. Seeing the performances of these five athletes, they couldn't help but praise them.
"These five athletes are truly the strongest in the men's high jump event tonight. While 2.15 meters may not seem particularly challenging, let me share some data with you. Looking back at the competitions since 2018, only 252 athletes worldwide have successfully cleared the 2.15-meter height throughout the year. In other words, their easy clearance just now puts them among the top 252 athletes in the world for this difficulty."
The viewers in front of their TVs, who had initially tuned in for fun and didn't know much about the high jump, were now enlightened by Shao Minyi and Li Sen's explanation.
At that moment, Zheng Xiaoya, watching the Asian Championships at home with her parents, was also surprised. "Is 2.15 meters really that challenging? I've seen a lot of discussions online about Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao attempting heights above 2.30 meters tonight, and I thought the gap between 2.15 meters and 2.30 meters was significant. It doesn't seem that way now."
Nearby, Zheng's parents were also a bit surprised. They paused for a moment, and then Zheng's dad expressed with some emotion, "After all, it's a top-level athletics competition in Asia..."
Hearing her dad's comment, Zheng Xiaoya nodded in agreement.
As the high jump competition progressed, most of the other events at the Asian Championships had already concluded. Consequently, a significant portion of the live broadcast was focused on the high jump.
The fact that all five of the initial athletes had cleared the 2.15-meter height with ease did make many viewers wonder if it was as challenging as they had thought.
However, as the competition continued, it became evident that only two athletes maintained a one-time clearance success rate at 2.15 meters. The remaining five athletes had to attempt the jump a second time to clear the bar.
In the end, although all athletes successfully cleared the bar at 2.15 meters, it could be said that this height served as a turning point, with some athletes needing to give their all to succeed.
Subsequently, the head referee raised the bar's height again. This time, however, he didn't raise it to 2.20 meters all at once but stopped at 2.19 meters, reducing the height increase.
Clearly, the head referee had judged that not all athletes on the field would be able to easily clear the 2.20-meter bar.
It should be noted that this head referee, as an experienced official in the high jump, had sharp judgment and extensive experience. After raising the bar to 2.19 meters, although the one-time clearance rate remained relatively high, the competition saw two athletes eliminated after failing three attempts for the first time.
At this stage, the scent of competition was finally starting to spread. The brutal elimination phase of the high jump was about to officially unfold!
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Chapter 124: High Jump Final (Part 2) & Unexpected Incident
At the height of 2.19 meters in the high jump, athletes Lee Deokhee from South Korea and Adnan from Malaysia were the first to be eliminated.
The elimination of these two athletes began to create a tense atmosphere at the venue. For many of the athletes present, the 2.19-meter height was like a rising threshold that was becoming increasingly difficult to clear.
Both Lee Deokhee and Adnan displayed expressions of frustration on their faces. They had both gone through three challenging attempts before reluctantly exiting the competition.
The audience at the venue offered a brief round of applause to encourage the departing athletes, but the competitors on the field had no spare energy to consider Lee Deokhee and Adnan's feelings at that moment.
After their exits, the head referee at the venue once again signaled for the bar to be raised.
This time, the height of the bar finally increased from 2.19 meters to 2.23 meters, still a 4-centimeter increment in height.
At this height, even the confident Abdallah would not choose to pass. Including Wang Shen, Ye Wenhao, and others, the competition was now focused on the athletes' one-time clearance rate. Maintaining a high one-time clearance rate was crucial for them to gain an advantage in their performance and conserve their energy for higher records.
Currently, there were still quite a few athletes on the field who had maintained a 100% one-time clearance rate. The sequence for this high jump event happened to align well, with the strongest athlete, Wang Shen, and his companions, ranked at the front. Starting from the 2.23-meter height, it was Wang Shen who took the lead to step onto the field.
As Wang Shen walked out of the preparation area and was about to move towards the take-off point, Ye Wenhao patted his shoulder and gave him a thumbs-up with a smile.
Wang Shen glanced at him, nodded with a smile, and then turned to approach the take-off point.
The height of 2.23 meters, although not particularly challenging for Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao, the two previous attempts at 2.15 and 2.19 meters had helped them find their competitive rhythm on the field. However, at this height, any lack of focus could lead to mistakes.
Standing at the take-off point, Wang Shen placed his hands on his hips, took a deep breath, then raised his head and signaled to the chief referee that he was ready.
Upon confirmation from the timekeeper that the competition had begun, they started the stopwatch.
"Wang Shen is getting ready to jump. Let's see how he performs in this jump!"
In the sports channel's broadcast studio, after explaining the potential pressure that the jumper might face in this jump, hosts Shao Minyi and Li Sen shifted their focus to Wang Shen as they saw him prepare for takeoff.
On the television screen, Wang Shen didn't linger at the take-off point for long. He then raised his head, slightly lowered his body, and began his approach with a quick start.
Wang Shen's approach wasn't characterized by extraordinary speed, but it wasn't slow either. After a series of fast and curved strides, Wang Shen was already approaching the take-off board along an arched path.
Compared to the previous steps of his approach, Wang Shen's last two steps featured more noticeable leg extension and swing movements. As he was about to reach the take-off board, his two arms swung vigorously backward, altering the direction of his body's potential energy. After his left foot touched the take-off board, his movements utilized the force from pushing off the ground, coupled with the rapid extension and thrusting of his swing leg.
In a series of actions, everyone saw Wang Shen's body seemingly soar effortlessly into the air, as if he had risen from flat ground. He smoothly crossed over the bar with a perfect and elegant form.
"Excellent! A perfect one-time clearance!"
In the commentary booth, Li Sen exclaimed, "From the elasticity of the approach to the quick shift of weight forward in the last two steps, as well as the takeoff and rotation in mid-air, this series of movements was exceptionally smooth. A perfect one-time clearance!"
Li Sen glanced at the replay on the screen and said with a smile, "It can be seen that during the winter training period, Wang Shen has made some adjustments to his technique. Compared to his pre-winter training self, the current Wang Shen has made subtle changes in the final stages of his approach and takeoff movements. Hopefully, these changes will present us with a different Wang Shen in this competition!"
In the online live chat, after Wang Shen cleared the bar in a single attempt, the audience began cheering and praising in the live chat. Before Wang Shen's attempt, many viewers were worried because the bar had already been raised to 2.23 meters, and they weren't sure if Wang Shen could maintain a 100% clearance rate.
Fortunately, Wang Shen managed to handle the pressure with ease in this jump.
Following Wang Shen's clearance, the next athlete to jump was Abdallah from Qatar, the host country. As a top-level star athlete from Qatar, Abdallah was extremely popular in his home country. After he stood up and signaled his intention to jump, the local audience responded with applause and cheers.
Abdallah waved to the audience and then casually walked to the take-off point, signaling the referee that he was ready.
Compared to Wang Shen, Abdallah didn't have to face the previous "curse of failed attempts." His pressure was much less. At the take-off point, he hardly wasted any time on preparation. With lightning speed, he glided through the approach without hesitation, then gently pushed off the take-off board with his left foot, soaring into the air effortlessly.
At a height of 2.23 meters, Abdallah cleared it on his first attempt!
After the previous five athletes failed to clear the bar at 2.23 meters, Wang Shen and Abdallah's consecutive successful attempts showcased the difference between Asia's top high jumpers and the elite high jumpers of Asia.
As spectators speculated whether the remaining three athletes would also succeed, just like in the 2.19-meter height, the next to step up was Tomoaki Yamashita from Japan.
Tomoaki Yamashita from Japan had been a long-time rival of Wang Shen and others in the Asian Six Nations Athletics Championships. After that particular competition, he had been training diligently, aiming to achieve better results the next time he faced Wang Shen and the others, hoping to erase the previous defeats.
However, perhaps his strong desire for victory had led to excessive pressure, which in turn affected his competitive state. When Yamashita signaled his intention to jump, commentator Shao Minyi remarked, "...his approach seems too tense."
As Yamashita went through his approach, take-off from the board, and subsequent clearance attempt, it was evident that his movements were affected by his nervousness. Due to his excessive tension, his body lacked elasticity during the approach, leading to a suboptimal height during take-off. Although he successfully cleared the upper part of the bar, when he attempted to pass his lower body over, the bar came down along with him onto the cushion.
In that moment, anyone could see his tightly pressed lips and furrowed brow.
Yamashita Tomoaki, at 2.23 meters, failed on his first jump.
He closed his eyes tightly for a moment and then turned silently, leaving the landing area and returning to the preparation area with a disappointed expression.
Yamashita's failure broke the previous undefeated streak of the five athletes at this height.
Perhaps the failure of the previous athlete indeed had an impact on the subsequent ones. Following Yamashita's failure, there was a slight error during the clearance attempt of the next athlete, Ghazwan Jihani.
The consecutive failures of Yamashita Tomoaki and Ghazwan Jihani made the atmosphere at the venue even more tense.
In the spectator stands, Coach Li Mingzhuo stood with folded hands, watching the unfolding situation quietly. It was soon to be Ye Wenhao's turn to compete. Other coaches beside him, including Jiang Wentao, remained silent as well. Everyone was carefully observing the developments on the field.
Up until this point, Wang Shen and Abdallah were the only athletes who had maintained a 100% clearance rate. Ye Wenhao's next jump would determine whether the Chinese team could gain an advantage against the Qatar team.
On the field, Ye Wenhao seemed completely unaffected by the recent developments. He had always exuded an aura of determination and unwavering self-confidence. This confidence was one of the crucial reasons he could closely compete with Wang Shen, even managing to outperform him for a significant part of the previous season.
At the starting point, Ye Wenhao's gestures to the head referee were decisive. He waved his hand lightly, and as soon as the timekeeper next to him began counting, Ye Wenhao initiated his approach without hesitation. He kept his eyes fixed on the direction of the bar and rapidly executed his long and forceful run-up.
Ye Wenhao's running style was distinct from Wang Shen's. His pace was fast and powerful, giving the impression of recklessness. However, this apparent recklessness did not mean his approach lacked strategy. His rhythm was well-calibrated to harness his body's speed and convert the running momentum into upward lift during take-off.
Start, run-up, push-off, take-off...
These actions appeared crude when performed by Ye Wenhao, yet this roughness brought about a unique beauty of strength distinct from the other athletes.
As his body extended gracefully in the air and cleared the bar with ease, Ye Wenhao landed smoothly on the cushion, swiftly executed a flip, and stood up, waving to the spectators with a smile.
In front of Ye Wenhao, the crossbar rested motionless on the uprights.
Ye Wenhao, at 2.23 meters, cleared the bar effortlessly in a single attempt.
"Great!"
In the spectator stands, Jiang Wentao and others cheered with smiles on their faces.
At this stage, with more Chinese athletes clearing the bar in one attempt, the Chinese team's chances of victory had improved significantly. These five athletes on the field had nearly identical levels of skill, and stability might prove to be the key factor determining their success.
After successfully clearing the bar, Ye Wenhao returned to the preparation area.
Following Ye Wenhao, it was Cherubin from Bahrain who took the stage. Based on his performance in the previous jumps, many spectators, both at the venue and watching on television, believed Cherubin had a good chance of clearing the bar successfully. However, the spectators' predictions proved to be incorrect.
Cherubin 's attempt at clearing the bar was marred by subtle mistakes in his run-up, leading to an overall lackluster performance that prevented him from successfully clearing the bar.
Following Cherubin's failed attempt, athletes such as Kazeemi, Bekadu, Samba, and Taipei's Chan Chun-Han also faltered in their first attempts at this height.
One by one, they faced defeat.
The consecutive failures in the first attempts of these five athletes at the 2.23-meter height left the spectators both at the venue and in front of their televisions feeling tense.
After this nerve-wracking sequence of five consecutive failed attempts at 2.23 meters, the second round of attempts was about to begin.
As of now, only Wang Shen, Abdallah, and Ye Wenhao had cleared the bar successfully on their first attempts at this height. Therefore, the second round of attempts involved a considerable number of athletes. The three athletes who had succeeded on their first attempts were given a brief respite.
It should be noted that the 2.23-meter height was proving to be a challenging threshold for the athletes present, and in the second round of attempts, apart from Yamashita Tomoaki and Ghazwan Jihani, no athlete managed to clear the bar successfully.
After two consecutive rounds of failed attempts, the pressure on the remaining 5 athletes on the field had already become immense. The upcoming third round of trials represented their last chance!
If they couldn't seize this final opportunity to clear the bar, elimination awaited them.
Looking at these athletes on the field who had suffered consecutive failures, even the Chinese audience watching on television, who were not part of the same camp as these athletes, couldn't help but show some concern on their faces.
【...Watching them fail two consecutive trials, the pressure seems really overwhelming!】
【That's right, we're just watching the competition, but if it were us in the competition arena...】
【It's really tough. Just think about the first round of trials at 2.23 meters earlier. Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao felt quite comfortable clearing the bar initially, without much nervousness. Now, seeing these athletes fail consecutively, it makes us realize the difficulty they faced during that successful attempt.】
In the sports channel's online live stream chat, the audience continued to watch the competition nervously, and the chat was occasionally filled with discussions about the situation on the field.
However, despite the audience's hopes that these athletes would succeed, sometimes hope and reality had a significant gap.
When the third round of trials began, whether it was Kazeemi or the Qatari athlete Samba, neither could successfully clear the bar set at 2.23 meters.
Out of the 5 athletes attempting the trials, only the last one, Taipei's athlete Chan Chun-Han, managed to clear the bar, though it was a very close call. As he landed and stood up on the cushion, he excitedly clenched his fists, displaying the joy of his successful clearance.
Just by looking at his expression, you could feel the excitement he felt for successfully clearing the bar.
In the online live stream chat, the audience also shared in his joy at this moment.
【Wow, that wasn't easy at all. Earlier, four consecutive failures in front, and Chan Chun-Han was the last one. I thought he might not make it either!】
【Really, watching so many consecutive failed clearances earlier really affected our mood.】
The audience marveled at how hard it was for Chan Chun-Han to clear the bar and celebrated his successful attempt.
After this round, the number of athletes on the field quickly decreased, leaving only Wang Shen, Abdallah, and five others, including Chan Chun-Han.
After the eliminated athletes left the field, the head referee once again signaled the pole referees to raise the bar, this time setting it at 2.26 meters.
Compared to before, the bar's height of 2.26 meters was only raised by 3 centimeters.
Clearly, the referees decided that it wasn't suitable to increase the bar's height by 4 centimeters in one go.
Among the remaining 6 athletes, Wang Shen still held the top position. Since many athletes had failed consecutively at the 2.23 meters height, when it was Wang Shen's turn for his first attempt at 2.26 meters, he had had sufficient rest and appeared to be in good form.
Under everyone's gaze, with no apparent pressure, Wang Shen signaled his readiness to jump when the timer began. As he started his run-up towards the bar, it was evident from his elastic and relaxed movements that he was in a good state.
"This jump looks promising!"
In the sports channel's live broadcast room, commentator Shao Minyi watched Wang Shen's run-up and made a comment with a smile.
As he said, Wang Shen's jump went smoothly. When he reached the position of the take-off board, there was a slight change in his stride, shifting his weight forward. With his left foot pushing off the board and a graceful swing of his arms and legs, he effortlessly propelled himself into the air. Then, he rotated his body while clearing the bar.
Even after Wang Shen landed, stood up, and signaled to the surrounding audience, some people were still in disbelief.
Wang Shen had successfully cleared the bar at a height of 2.26 meters on his first attempt with ease.
Not only the on-site spectators but also those watching on television were a bit stunned.
Sitting in front of the TV, Zheng Xiaoya watched Wang Shen's effortless clearance and widened her eyes, turning to her parents. "Wow, Wang Shen made that look too easy, didn't he?"
Just a moment ago, their family was watching the dismal scene of consecutive failures by athletes at the 2.23-meter height, with only 3 out of 7 succeeding.
Now, when the height had been raised to 2.26 meters, Wang Shen's first attempt looked so effortlessly successful?
Zheng Xiaoya's parents also had a hint of amazement on their faces. Clearly, they were also surprised by Wang Shen's recent attempt. After all, with so many athletes failing at 2.23 meters, the difficulty at 2.26 meters was even more challenging.
Zheng Xiaoya's family, after seeing this result, couldn't help but express their admiration. The gap in skill between top athletes and elite athletes was indeed quite significant.
After Wang Shen effortlessly cleared the 2.26-meter bar, not only the spectators but also the remaining athletes on the field wore much more serious expressions. After all, with Wang Shen continuing to maintain a 100% clearance rate, the pressure on the remaining athletes was amplified.
As Wang Shen returned to the preparation area from the landing zone, Abdallah also gave Wang Shen a serious look before turning to walk toward the jumping area.
Jumping after Wang Shen, Abdallah certainly faced pressure, but he was also a highly skilled and confident athlete. Since he had been able to clear 2.34 meters in training, he wouldn't be intimidated by the 2.26 meters in front of him. However, he needed to approach it with extra caution and seriousness.
After Abdallah stood up, the atmosphere among the spectators in the arena became even more enthusiastic. Cheers, applause, and passionate chants erupted from the local Qatari audience, showing their earnest support for Abdallah.
Abdallah casually waved to the crowd and then shifted his focus to the bar in front of him. The bar's height had been precisely measured by the officials and repositioned on the stands. Following the signal from the head referee, Abdallah took a deep breath in place. This time, he didn't start running immediately but instead prepared himself before beginning his run-up.
It was evident that Abdallah was taking this jump seriously, and his cautious approach paid off.
Abdallah, first attempt at 2.26 meters – success!
The audience in the arena erupted with excitement upon seeing Abdallah's successful clearance. Everyone jumped up, waved flags, and passionately celebrated Abdallah's achievement.
After all, this jump meant that Abdallah, like Wang Shen, had successfully maintained a 100% clearance rate.
Following Wang Shen and Abdallah, the third athlete to take the stage was Japan's Tomoaki Yamashita. This time, he seemed to have learned from his previous mistakes and made enough preparations to relax himself.
However, Yamashita's attempt at relaxation didn't bring him the desired result.
Tomoaki Yamashita, first attempt at 2.26 meters – failure.
Until Ye Wenhao took the stage, only Wang Shen and Abdallah had maintained success.
In the Chinese athletes' section of the audience stands, Jiang Wentao and others became nervous once again. Could Ye Wenhao continue to maintain a 100% clearance rate?
At this stage of the competition, even the usually reckless Ye Wenhao felt some tension. After all, as everyone knew, if he could maintain a 100% clearance rate, the competition would become a showdown between him and Wang Shen against Abdallah. However, if he failed, the pressure on Wang Shen would increase.
Moreover, Wang Shen was the first athlete to take the stage, and relative to him, Ye Wenhao didn't know how the later athletes would perform or what choices they would make. Everything was still unknown.
For Wang Shen, this was a challenging on-the-spot judgment.
Ye Wenhao had many thoughts running through his mind, but he quickly pushed them aside. Under the referee's signal, Ye Wenhao reached the starting point and made a gesture indicating he was ready to jump.
Following the timekeeper's signal, Ye Wenhao didn't rush forward like he usually did but adjusted his approach slightly before beginning his run-up.
This time, Ye Wenhao took a more cautious approach, but as he planted his left foot on the takeoff board, there was a slight deviation in his movement. This deviation instantly brought him intense pain. Although he gritted his teeth and continued his jump, his technical movements were temporarily compromised due to the sudden pain.
In the preparation area not far away, Wang Shen was watching Ye Wenhao's performance. At the moment when Ye Wenhao took off, Wang Shen keenly noticed a fleeting grimace on Ye Wenhao's face.
This is bad...
The thought flashed through Wang Shen's mind, and he quickly stood up. However, all he could do was watch as Ye Wenhao barely cleared the bar.
It wasn't just Wang Shen; many people in the audience also noticed that Ye Wenhao didn't look entirely natural while clearing the bar. After he successfully cleared the bar, although he immediately flipped to his feet, everyone also saw that Ye Wenhao, after standing up, took a moment to look down at his left leg.
At 2.26 meters in height, Ye Wenhao had still managed to maintain a 100% clearance rate, but it came at the cost of a slight muscle strain in his left leg.
Since the injury wasn't severe, Ye Wenhao didn't require a stretcher from the medical staff. However, the other athletes at the scene felt that he probably wouldn't be able to continue with the competition.
Unexpectedly, Ye Wenhao returned to the preparation area.
"Oh, I got injured," Ye Wenhao scratched his head, wearing a smile, but he looked a bit more downcast than before.
Wang Shen, who had put away his usual smile, furrowed his brow and asked, "Why did you come back to the preparation area?"
After Ye Wenhao sat down, the medical team at the scene quickly approached, conducted a brief examination of his injury, applied ointment, and wrapped a bandage around his injured leg.
"You still plan to continue competing?" Wang Shen looked at Ye Wenhao with clear disapproval.
Ye Wenhao grinned, "Ah, it's not a serious injury. We train every day, so how could I not know about these minor injuries? I can't just leave you alone on the field, can I?"
Hearing this, Wang Shen still furrowed his brow and remained silent.
Ye Wenhao was right; they were all athletes, and they knew the condition of their injuries quite well. Some minor injuries indeed didn't affect the competition. However, it was still a form of damage to the body. While it might not matter when they were young, these could become lingering issues as they grew older.
Wang Shen knew that Ye Wenhao, despite his easygoing personality, could also be quite stubborn. After thinking it over, he decided not to repeat his advice to withdraw from the competition.
However, after taking a look at the bandage on Ye Wenhao's leg, Wang Shen still furrowed his brow and said, "Since you've decided to stay, then continue, but don't push yourself too hard. If you feel you can't go on, request a pass or forfeit."
Upon hearing this, Ye Wenhao continued to wear his cheerful expression, nodded in agreement, and then added with a smile, "Oh, don't look so serious. You look better when you smile."
Hearing Ye Wenhao's playful banter, Wang Shen rubbed his forehead and thought that this guy was probably an oversized version of Qiu Wen.
Although Ye Wenhao was injured, it wasn't a severe injury, and it didn't affect his performance in the competition. However, spectators like Li Mingzhuo in the audience and viewers watching on television were concerned about Ye Wenhao's injury.
However, the competition continued without interruption, and the audience had no way of knowing Ye Wenhao's current condition.
After Ye Wenhao successfully cleared the bar, the only athlete left in the first round of attempts at the 2.26-meter height was Chan Chun-Han.
However, Chan Chun-Han had barely cleared the 2.23-meter height on his third attempt, so it was no surprise that he couldn't work wonders in his first attempt at 2.26 meters.
After Chan Chun-Han's attempt, the first round of attempts at 2.26 meters came to an end. Only Wang Shen, Abdallah, and Ye Wenhao (who was now injured) had cleared the bar. It was becoming increasingly evident that the ultimate showdown would likely be between Abdallah and Wang Shen!
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