Original title: Riding the wind and waves “boat” boy
At about 9 am on August 4, my skin was sore from the scorching sun. Under the Jialing River Bridge in Wusheng County, with the order of the coach Zhang Shunyin, 11 young men swayed vigorously, one single boat, one double boat and two quadruple boats, galloping towards the distant target. The rowing rowed across the river, leaving behind silvery white spray.
In the rowing competition of the 14th Sichuan Games that ended not long ago, the Guang’an City rowing team won a total of 6 gold medals, 4 silver medals and 3 bronze medals. The total number of medals and the total score of the team ranked first in the province in this event.
After the race, the rowing team ushered in a rare holiday. But there are still 11 male players who stayed, and they have to step up their training to prepare for the next National Rowing Junior Championships. These players are currently studying in Wusheng Middle School, the oldest is 18 years old and the youngest is 16 years old.
Sweat mixed with river water
Rural dolls practice rowing hard with goals
After the 90-minute water training that day, the team members carefully washed the rowing boat with river water. Under the scorching sun, the exposed dark skin of Feng Qilin and his teammates was reddened by the sun, and the sweat mixed with the river water, which made their clothes wet. On those big, well-knotted hands, the calluses that were soaked white by the river water were particularly eye-catching.
Zhang Shunyin, the leader of the rowing team, introduced that rowing a rowing row is equivalent to pushing a 50-kilogram weight. At the beginning of paddling, blood blisters will be rubbed on the hands of the team members. These blood blisters will be worn or punctured again and again. Calluses gradually form after healing…
At present, the Guang’an Rowing Team has a total of 23 members, the oldest is 18 years old and the youngest is 16 years old. Almost all of them are left-behind students in rural areas. “Rural dolls can endure this hardship even more,” said a staff member of the Wusheng County Education, Science and Sports Bureau.
The main player Feng Qilin is 16 years old this year, 1.91 meters tall, and is the tallest man in the rowing team. “The first time I boarded the rowing boat was in April 2020. The boat capsized because of my body imbalance. I was wet and cold. I was so scared that I hugged the rowing boat and waited for my teammates to help me pull it to the river.” scene, Feng Qilin said with a smile. In the 14th Sichuan Games, he and his teammate Deng Yongfa won two gold medals in the men’s B 2000-meter double sculls and the men’s B 4000-meter double sculls in one fell swoop. A few days ago, he and two other teammates were also selected into the Chinese rowing “big man program”, and have the opportunity to be selected for the national team in the future. He also wants to go to university for further study, “Chengdu Sports Institute is my goal.” Feng Qilin said.
“To participate in the National Rowing Youth Championships, we hope to do our best, and strive to apply for sports colleges in the future.” Yang Jun, who has been training in the rowing team for 4 years, stated his goal. Yang Jun grew up in Wusheng Village and is 17 years old this year. He missed the Hefei Teachers College by a small margin in last year’s sports single-entry exam, and now he continues to struggle for his college dream. “I want to go to university and become a physical education teacher or coach in the future,” Yang Jun said.
Also in the rowing team training for 4 years, there is about to be promoted to the third year of senior Qian Jie, he is 1.83 meters tall. “If you don’t have enough arm length, you can only work hard on physical fitness. Now you have to practice water sports and physical training during the day, and take online classes at night to remediate culture and actively prepare for single-stroke exams.” Qian Jie said.
In this National Rowing Youth Championship, these 11 male players will represent Sichuan Province in two events: four-person sculls and eight-person sculls with helmsman. Due to the high price of 8-person boats, the competition boats are more than 500,000 yuan each. The team members usually train in single boats, double boats and quadruple boats.
“On the eve of the competition, we will organize the rowing team to rent venues and equipment in Tianjin, where the competition is taking place, and carry out the training of the eight-person sculls and helmsman project. Now we will mainly refer to the competition standards and increase the intensity, including strengthening running and dynamometer training. , as well as increasing the duration and volume of water training, and now we have to paddle 20 kilometers on the water every day.” Zhang Shunyin introduced.
Help players set goals in life
Send more talents to the country
In 2026, Guang’an City, Neijiang City and Yibin City will jointly host the 15th Sichuan Games, and the opening ceremony will be held in Guang’an. This news is both an incentive and a challenge for the Guang’an Rowing and Canoeing Team.
Wang Li, head of the sports unit of Wusheng County Education, Science and Sports Bureau, introduced that he is currently working on a plan for the third talent selection plan for the Guang’an Rowing and Canoeing Team. Games. This time, the players are required to be born after 2008. The height of the female players is 1.65 meters and above, and the height of the male players is 1.75 meters and above. The selection is mainly for township schools.
Why target township schools? “Take the current team members as an example, most of them are from rural areas, and many are left-behind students, who are more able to endure hardship and are more willing to stay.” Wang Li said that they can also set up a more ambitious life goal through training and competition. , and do it step by step.
Zhang Shunyin introduced that when the players join the team, they will initially decide whether to practice rowing or kayaking based on their physical advantages. “Judging from the current team members, rowers are slender and their arms span is longer than their height; kayakers have wider shoulders and stronger shoulders.” Zhang Shunyin said.
From a “grassroots” team that borrowed equipment for training and competition, to becoming an ace in Wusheng competitive sports, today’s Guang’an rowing and canoeing team is a dark horse in Sichuan Province. According to the statistics of Wusheng County Education, Science and Sports Bureau, since its establishment in 2015, the team has won 4 national championships and 61 provincial championships; it has trained 2 national athletes, 48 first-level athletes, and 12 second-level athletes.
“The current conditions are getting better and better.” Wang Li introduced that since 2017, Guang’an has allocated 800,000 yuan of funds every year for team members’ living, equipment procurement, competitions and other matters. The training base was also built last year. It was moved from the bayou wharf to the Jialing River Bridge and has a more professional training ground. At present, Wusheng County has also introduced a rowing coach and two canoeing coaches through the introduction of talents. “Strive to send more outstanding talents to the provincial and national teams, so that Guang’an athletes can be present in the national, Asian and even world competitions.” Wang Li said. (according to Chuanguan News)
Source: Guang’an Daily
(Editors: Yuan Hanling, Gao Hongxia)
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