日批在线视频_内射毛片内射国产夫妻_亚洲三级小视频_在线观看亚洲大片短视频_女性向h片资源在线观看_亚洲最大网

left corner left corner
China Daily Website

Gold medal for public participation

Updated: 2012-08-04 07:48
By Chen Weihua ( China Daily)

Gold medal for public participationWatching Chinese weightlifter Wu Jingbiao burst into painful tears, and bow and apologize in front of cameras after having to settle for a silver medal at the London Olympic Games was nothing but heartbreaking.

The 23-year-old's tears should not have been for failing to win the gold. Instead, they should have been tears of happiness. After all, a silver medal also represents triumph, although many expected him to win the gold.

No one should blame Wu, not even the athlete himself. Athletes should be applauded and celebrated as long as they try their best, regardless of what place they finish in a contest. This Olympic spirit, however, is not well understood by most Chinese, officials and the public alike.

Many Chinese still believe that the gold medal tally at the Olympics is proof of a country's strength in sports. Many may recall the humiliation in the 1936 Berlin Games when all but one Chinese athlete was eliminated in the preliminaries. It resulted in a Singapore-based newspaper mocking China as the "Sick Man of East Asia".

Chinese sharpshooter Xu Haifeng's gold medal in the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles is widely regarded as an achievement that finally washed that disgrace off the Chinese athletes.

From then on, Chinese have proved that they can win gold medals, and lots of them, as was seen at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, where China bagged 51 gold, more than any other country. China has proved that again during the first six days of the 2012 London Olympics.

There is nothing more to prove for China. And there is no need for Chinese to be obsessed with gold medals any more.

Wu's apology was apparently because of the high expectation people had from him. China's central and local governments have invested huge amounts to train each Olympic athlete and coaches have tried their best to prepare them for the events. As a result, the nation is infatuated with gold medals.

Perhaps that's why silver and bronze medalists, who too are great athletes, are often treated like losers. For example, Yi Siling was in the spotlight for winning China's first gold medal in 10-meter air rifle at the London Olympics, but bronze medalist Yu Dan was largely forgotten.

The good thing is that there seems to be a mass awakening on such blind pursuit and worship of gold medals. In news media and blogs both, people have voiced their support for Wu and condemned the over-glorification of gold medals.

We should start a debate on whether the gold medal tally really reflects the strength of a nation.

Despite China winning more gold medals than any other country in 2008, sports at the grassroots level in the country has long been ill funded and always lacked facilities.

My colleagues and I play soccer every weekend in Manhattan and Queens of New York City, and I know it is almost impossible to find such a field for free in either Shanghai or Beijing. In Beijing, you have to pay 1,500 yuan ($240) to rent a soccer field for two hours in a university opposite the China Daily office.

The lack of sports facilities in China has discouraged public participation in sports. It is in sharp contrast to what I have seen in cities outside China.

The Ibirapuera Park in Sao Paulo, Brazil, for example, has two great museums for Afro-Brazil and contemporary art.

Yet what impressed me most during my visit there a month ago was the influx of young people jogging, biking and skateboarding in the park. That is also a daily scene in New York Central Park and along the banks of the Hudson River.

China has invested immensely in the Olympics for the sake of national pride, but it is public participation in sports that is worth more than all the gold medals. It is also a true reflection of a nation's strength.

The author, based in New York, is Deputy Editor of China Daily USA. Email: chenweihua@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 08/04/2012 page6)

8.03K
...
主站蜘蛛池模板: av人人 | 日本h视频在线观看 | 清纯唯美激情 | 欧美少妇在线观看 | 国产婷婷久久 | 成人福利视频导航 | 中文字幕免费在线观看视频 | 黄色在线观看免费 | 日本欧美一区二区三区不卡视频 | 中文av在线播放 | 欧美区在线 | 久久久美女 | 中文字幕av在线播放 | 深夜视频在线播放 | 日韩欧美视频在线 | 四虎国产成人精品免费一女五男 | 狠狠狠狠狠狠狠 | 成人av图片| 亚洲视频免费 | 亚洲开心网 | 国产日 | 美女久久久久久久久久 | 日韩欧美在线看 | 久久久久久久久久久久久久av | 午夜影院欧美 | 偷拍亚洲另类 | 久久精品国产免费 | 中文字幕色站 | a在线免费观看 | 九九九精品视频 | 一级黄色片看看 | 日本a级c片免费看三区 | 免费在线黄 | 亚洲欧美日本在线观看 | 超级碰在线 | 国产在线观看你懂的 | 色播久久 | 在线免费观看成年人视频 | 999久久久精品 | 视频在线观看一区 | 午夜精品视频在线观看 |