Translator: dapotaturs
Release Date: 10/11/2023
Chapter 255: The Opening of the Olympic Track and Field Schedule!
On the morning of July 24th at 7 AM, the qualification rounds for men's 10m air pistol had already begun. However, the athletes from the track and field team did not go to watch the competition in the Olympic Village. Instead, after ensuring they had sufficient sleep and rest, they proceeded to the training facilities prepared by the Japanese organizers for athletes from various events.
On the 24th, China's shooting team maintained their usual excellent form and a stable mindset. In the face of top-notch competitors from around the world, they managed to secure the first gold medal of the Olympics for China by outshooting their opponents in the final two shots!
China's team had a successful start in the first competition, and this early victory filled all Chinese spectators with joy and pride.
Compared to the Rio Olympics in 2016, the distance between the host city and China in this Tokyo Olympics can be seen as a "home game" for China. Perhaps due to this proximity, the athletes adapted well to the overall environment in Tokyo. With this solid foundation in terms of their condition, athletes from various events also performed exceptionally well.
In the competition schedule from July 24th to July 29th, China currently holds a relatively stable second place on the medal table. However, the gap between China and the third-placed UK team is not very significant. The UK team has the potential to overtake China at any time, and the presence of this possibility keeps both Chinese audiences and Chinese athletes on edge.
Starting from July 30th, the track and field schedule will officially begin, and a total of 43 gold medals will be awarded in the entire track and field program, with China having a reasonable chance to win no more than 3 of them.
Looking at the competition between China and the UK in track and field in the previous Olympics, China won two gold, two silver, and two bronze medals, while the UK won two gold, one silver, and four bronze medals. In terms of strength in track and field events, it's hard to say who is stronger between China and the UK.
"In general, although the UK's chances of winning gold and their medal-winning strength are similar to ours, we absolutely cannot be complacent. To maintain China's current position on the gold medal tally, at the very least in track and field events, we must ensure that the number of medals we win is not less than that of the UK!"
On the noon of July 29th, Jiang Wentao held a small meeting with the track and field team, primarily discussing this matter. China and the UK are currently neck and neck in the medal tally, and while the track and field team may not be able to significantly increase China's medal count, they must ensure that the track and field team does not drag the team down.
The coaches and athletes of the national team listened attentively to Jiang Wentao's words. Of course, even if he hadn't said it, they would still give their all in the competition. After all, this is the Olympic stage they have been dreaming of for a long time, and who wouldn't want to leave a successful mark on this stage?
After this meeting, Jiang Wentao also had a private conversation with Su Bai, inquiring about the current progress of Chen Yadan, Lin Yao, Zhang Jiale, and Li Junhao's combination in the mixed-gender 4x400m relay. When Su Bai made the decision to give up the mixed-gender 4x400m relay event, Pei Jin'an had also submitted the final decision, and after reviewing the reasons, the Athletics Management Center had agreed to Su Bai's decision.
Su Bai, now considered an authority in the 400m sprint event in China, had his recommendation taken very seriously by the authorities. Furthermore, if the mixed-gender 4x400m relay were to affect the subsequent long string of events, it would be an unacceptable loss.
In response to Jiang Wentao's inquiry, Su Bai briefly reported on the emergency training situation of the mixed-gender 4x400m relay team in recent days. In fact, during this year's winter training cycle, the mixed-gender 4x400m relay team had already attempted to replace multiple athletes for training. Zhang Jiale and Li Junhao had developed a certain level of understanding in the training for the men's 4x400m relay, so transitioning to the mixed-gender 4x400m relay was not too difficult.
The athletes mainly focused on relay baton exchanges and the rest was left to individual performance. To those unfamiliar with the situation, it might seem like changing team members in a relay team doesn't have much impact beyond speed. However, in reality, replacing teammates who have trained together and built trust can indeed have a significant impact. Especially, the two core members, Zhang Ziyi and Qiu Wen, were replaced. They were crucial to the relay, and having Zhang Ziyi in the team brought cohesion and confidence that was different from the current situation.
In the original lineup, not only could they maximize their performance, but the team also had a chance to perform beyond their usual level due to high confidence and motivation. Without the core members and their associated confidence, the team was unlikely to perform above their usual level.
Su Bai's report was straightforward and clear, and Jiang Wentao, understanding the situation, didn't say much, only nodding to indicate his understanding.
The next day, on the morning of July 30th, the athletics events in the Olympics officially began.
On the opening day of the athletics schedule, there were a total of 11 events divided between the morning and afternoon sessions. The morning events included men's high jump qualifiers, men's 3000m steeplechase heats, men's discus qualifiers, women's 800m, and men's 100m.
The only final of the day was the men's 10,000m final scheduled for 19:30 in the evening. This event was the first to award a gold medal in athletics, and unfortunately for China, it was also a strong event for the UK.
Of course, there were more events than just athletics on this day. China had several chances to win gold, such as the unexpected swimming prodigy, whose final would also take place today. Additionally, there were finals in women's table tennis, fencing, and a range of other sports.
But for the track and field athletes, if the first gold medal in athletics went to the UK, it would undoubtedly add extra pressure to the competition.
However, regardless of the pressure the track and field athletes might be feeling, the schedule had already been set and couldn't be changed.
In the morning session, China's focus was on the men's high jump qualifiers and the women's 100m heats. In these two events, China had two athletes competing. For the men's high jump, Wang Shen was in qualification group A, while Ye Wenhao was in group B.
At 10 a.m., the men's high jump qualifiers officially began, featuring a total of 43 male athletes. The initial height for the high jump qualifiers was set slightly lower than in the World Athletics Championships and Diamond League - 2.17 meters instead of 2.19 meters.
At this time, it was 9 a.m. in China, but there were still many people watching the event in the live stream of the sports channel.
Some viewers who had followed the World Athletics Championships and the Diamond League found it amusing that the initial height was slightly "friendlier."
【Well done, the Tokyo Organizing Committee may have set the strictest qualification standards in history, but they are surprisingly kind during the actual competition! (Three head pats emoji)】
The qualification round aimed to select athletes for the final, and the standard for advancement mainly depended on how well the athletes performed on the day.
During the entire qualification process, the athletes would jump as if it were a regular competition. After all athletes from groups A and B had completed their jumps, the judges would combine the results and select the top 13 athletes to advance to the final.
Narrowing it down from 43 to 13 was a ruthless process. Even in the qualification round, some athletes who weren't entirely confident of their abilities didn't dare to relax too much. They aimed to achieve the best possible result to secure a place in the final.
For Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao, Wang Shen was known as the "Steady Intelligent AI," and he didn't feel much pressure during the qualification round. As for Ye Wenhao, after clearing 2.33 meters in the Olympic selection trials, his overall form seemed to have improved. He also had a personality that wasn't overly sensitive, and he saw the pressure of competition as a source of motivation.
So, in the morning's men's high jump qualifiers, both Wang Shen and Ye Wenhao easily cleared 2.29 meters, while the final qualifying height for both groups was set at 2.26 meters. Naturally, both of them advanced to the final without any pressure.
In the online live chat rooms, there were some viewers who seemed a bit puzzled.
【Hey, why did they stop jumping after clearing 2.29 meters?】
【Well, if you think about it, in group A, there were 5 athletes who cleared 2.29 meters, and in group B, slightly more, 6 athletes. But there are only 13 spots available for the final in total. If you've already secured a stable spot in the final during the qualification round, then, of course, it's a waste to jump another 1 centimeter!】
While many people were delighted that both of China's men's high jump stars had easily qualified for the final, the women's 100m heats were also taking place simultaneously. The two Chinese female athletes who had earned Olympic qualifications each secured their spots in their respective heats.
In the morning's two events, all four of China's participating athletes advanced to the next round!
This great news brought smiles to the audience, and many people on social media happily discussed and shared this news. Since the start of the Olympics on July 24, a slew of new internet celebrities had emerged in China, most of them related to the Olympics. They discussed Olympic-related topics and became popular.
The creation of these internet celebrities showed the current high level of interest in the Olympics. However, before people could bask in the joy of all the track and field athletes advancing in the morning session, a new post on social media began to circulate wildly.
【#TokyoOlympicsTrackandFieldSchedule# I just saw that the track and field team has announced the lineup for the mixed-gender 4x400m relay: Chen Yadan, Lin Yao, Zhang Jiale, and Li Junhao. It's a bit strange. Why isn't the relay team composed of the top-tier athletes Chen Yadan, Lin Yao, Zhang Ziyi, and Qiu Wen? Does Su Bai have so much confidence that he didn't send Zhang Ziyi and Qiu Wen to compete, and instead, these other relay team members can make it to the final?】
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Chapter 256: Negative Public Opinion and Reversal
It's unclear why, but this Weibo post questioning the Chinese team's mixed-gender 4x400m relay athlete lineup suddenly received tens of thousands of retweets, sparking a debate filled with negativity and righteous indignation.
【Why doesn't the relay team choose the best athletes for such an important Olympic event? Wasn't Zhang Jiale just selected for the national team during the trial earlier this year? What's his personal best result? Can he compete directly in the Olympics with that?】
【I know this Zhang Jiale. He was quite popular during the second season of the Athletics Idol Training Camp, right? The one whose family was closely watching his training. But that was just a TV show. Now it's the Olympics. You can't just let him compete because he's popular, right?】
【Zhang Ziyi and Qiu Wen are in Tokyo. Originally, they were key players in the mixed-gender 4x400m relay. So why aren't they competing now?】
Similar comments and retweets suddenly went viral on Weibo. Some passersby who had only noticed this topic due to the Olympic fervor were also swept up by these seemingly justified questions. Even some gossip-focused public accounts, whose key performance indicators were based on clicks and popularity, joined in on the discussion.
Soon, the hashtag #UnfairMixedGender4x400mTeamSelection started trending, and because the Olympics were ongoing, Olympic topics were already hot. People had been sharing a sense of pride and glory for the Chinese athletes' performance in the Games, and any topics suggesting unfairness or harm to Chinese athletes in the Olympics naturally stirred up strong emotions.
In the eyes of many, doing things during the Olympics that are not favorable to the participating athletes or do not promote good results for Chinese athletes is considered the work of malicious individuals.
This topic erupted and spread exceptionally quickly, and public opinion on the internet fermented rapidly.
In fact, when the Athletics National team and the Athletics Management Center's public opinion monitoring team discovered this matter, it was only on the list of upcoming trending topics. However, within a very short time after the monitoring team reported the relevant information directly to Liao Jie, it immediately surged into the top ten trending topics.
"Director Liao, the speed of this trend's rise doesn't seem normal. It looks like someone is pushing it behind the scenes." The staff member in charge of monitoring public sentiment looked at the situation. Anyone familiar with the trends on the internet and Weibo could see that the unusual speed of this trend's rise.
At this moment, Liao Jie was also checking Weibo's trending topics and reposted content. He clicked into a few accounts and noticed that many of the reposting accounts were clearly using pseudonyms.
Seeing this situation and the high volume of fake accounts, Liao Jie immediately understood that someone was trying to stir up trouble. However, he didn't know who or what the purpose was.
But it didn't take long for the motives of the person behind these actions to become apparent. The trending topic on Weibo started to include a lot of discussions related to Su Bai.
【Coach Su Bai, at such a young age, have you already started favoritism? Or did Zhang Jiale provide you with some benefits behind the scenes?】
【Li Junhao can be excused, after all, he was originally a member of the men's 4x400m relay team. But this Zhang Jiale was just selected for the national team during a trial... Oh, now that I think about it, during the trial, Coach Su Bai seemed to have the power to pick anyone he liked, right? Even though there were many excellent 400m athletes with good results in the team, he ended up choosing a group of random people?】
【Hehe, they say Coach Su Bai is an authoritative coach in the 400m sprint, but he didn't select the top performer among the young generation in the national 400m sprint, Ding Ruihan. Instead, he picked newcomers from the 800m, 1500m, and long jump events. Can these people really perform well? It's quite questionable!】
Of course, there were people who knew the situation with Ding Ruihan and came to his defense, claiming that he had been sent back to his original team due to disciplinary issues during training. However, these individuals were undoubtedly part of organized efforts to shape public opinion, with their own set of arguments. Their main line of argument was, "Ancient wisdom tells us that we should not be bound by conventions in recruiting talent. Ding Ruihan's disciplinary issue was minor, so why was he specifically excluded if the goal is to recruit talent?"
In any case, these individuals tried to manipulate the narrative, turning black into white and white into black. This operation clearly targeted Su Bai and some members of the 400m team, aiming to tarnish Su Bai's reputation through public opinion or pressure him into including Ding Ruihan in the national team.
The public opinion monitoring team and Liao Jie had no doubts after seeing this. It was evident that the sudden rise of this public opinion topic had a hidden hand behind it, and that hand belonged to Ding Ruihan or his parents.
During Su Bai's entire selection process for the trial team, detailed records were kept, including the training plans of various coaches, as well as the reasons for eliminating or sending back different athletes. The final list of athletes who made it into the national team was thoroughly documented by the Athletics Management Center and the National Sports Administration. To evaluate the trial team's overall performance and monitor training, there were clear records, including surveillance videos and training footage.
Liao Jie and his team were aware of Ding Ruihan's situation, and the decision for Su Bai to send him back to his original team was done without interference from the Athletics Management Center and the National Sports Administration. They agreed with the decision.
It was unexpected that Ding Ruihan, with his apparent lack of interest in dedicated training, would stir up trouble during the Olympics, taking advantage of the high media coverage of sports news to directly smear Su Bai and the team.
Thinking about this, a surge of anger filled Liao Jie.
"Go ahead and release a clarification, explaining the reasons behind Su Bai's current choices. Then, get in touch with sports media we know and have them create a special feature about Ding Ruihan. Additionally, obtain the training videos of Ding Ruihan when he was in the team and send them. Finally, let's find some evidence that connects Ding Ruihan to the manipulation of the social media trolls. I don't believe he can hide this without leaving any traces!"
"Contact the media to reveal the process of selecting trial team members conducted by Su Bai. Additionally, present the performance improvement curves of these trial-qualified athletes over the past half year. Create a comparison chart of Ding Ruihan's performance improvement as well!"
Liao Jie's forehead was veined with tension, but his thoughts were clear. He systematically arranged various measures to handle the situation. Once all these matters were properly arranged, he hung up the call and dialed a cross-border call to Su Bai in Japan. The mixed 4x400m relay for men and women was about to begin in the evening, and with the turmoil in the national media, Liao Jie wanted Su Bai to reassure the athletes, ensuring they were not affected during this crucial time.
Thinking about this, Liao Jie was infuriated once again. Those social media trolls audaciously claimed that Su Bai was selfish and would impact the athletes' performance during the Olympics. In reality, just by looking at this series of actions, it was evident who the truly selfish one was!
In the Tokyo Olympic Village, Su Bai was surprised for a moment after receiving the call. Thinking about Ding Ruihan's earlier outbursts and provocations, he was truly fed up with the situation.
"Alright, Director Liao, I'm aware of the situation. Please help handle the media and public opinion-related matters," Su Bai said, holding back his anger. He sincerely thanked Liao Jie for swiftly addressing the situation.
Su Bai had been in the sports community for a long time and understood that in certain sports, there were always problems and issues between the higher authorities, coaches, and others. It was because of these genuine problems that this topic could easily manipulate ordinary people to believe it.
However, based on his experiences so far, Su Bai was willing to believe that most people in the sports community genuinely cared about the sport and were dedicated to making a difference in the field.
After hanging up the call, Su Bai opened his mobile phone's Weibo app and checked the current state of public opinion. Due to the high popularity of this topic, some people who were unaware of the facts came to his Weibo to criticize him.
In this situation, Su Bai had no intention of remaining silent. A player like Ding Ruihan, even if he really manipulated public opinion, could absolutely not be allowed into the national team. Otherwise, it would be the greatest injustice to those athletes who genuinely earned their place in the national team through their hard work and skill.
Su Bai:【I just received a call and learned about the current public opinion situation on the internet. I would like to make a statement at this point. Since taking on the coaching position, every choice and judgment I've made has been based on what I believe to be the best solution for the team and the athletes. Regarding the mentioned athlete, Ding Ruihan, I would like to clarify the following: his personal conduct is inappropriate, he has displayed lax training discipline, and he has shown defiance towards coaching. Additionally, his natural talent does not warrant going to great lengths to include him in the national team. I can publicly state here that even if he were to dedicate himself entirely to training, three years from now, his personal best performance will not surpass that of any athlete in the same age group who has been selected for the national team.】
After Su Bai posted his statement, both the national team and the Athletics Management Center quickly published a joint clarification. The clarification explicitly stated why Su Bai chose to replace Qiu Wen and Zhang Ziyi with Zhang Jiale and Li Junhao.
Following this, some gossip public accounts reported that someone had indeed paid for trolls to manipulate this matter. The payment sender's last name was indeed Ding.
Meanwhile, on social media, some public accounts quickly compiled the Ding Ruihan incident. They also shared videos showing Ding Ruihan's lack of effort during training, his attempts to flirt with girls, and his disrespect towards his coach.
On social media, ordinary netizens, who were previously righteously indignant about the matter, were left stunned and then felt anger. They thought they were supporting justice, but it turned out they were being played for fools.
Ding Ruihan's side never expected the public opinion to turn so quickly. When everything was going smoothly for them, Ding Ruihan and his parents believed that the national team and Su Bai would definitely learn a lesson. However, in the blink of an eye, the reversal of public opinion made all the violent language from before rebound onto their heads.
At the same time, Zhang Jiale and Li Junhao learned about the situation online. Zhang Jiale frowned, went to Su Bai's room, knocked on his door, and said to Su Bai as he opened the door, "Coach, don't worry, I will give it my all... I'll show those guys my strength!"
Behind Zhang Jiale, Li Junhao also reached Su Bai's door, nodding unhappily, and said, "I will make that Ding guy see how amazing I am!"
Seeing the determined and displeased expressions on Zhang Jiale and Li Junhao's faces, Su Bai smiled and nodded, "Good, give it your all in the competition!"
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