Sailing requires certain professional skills and financial resources, so it was initially popularized only at the national level. The government selected specialized talents to form professional teams to participate in various international competitions, but it never became popular among the general public until the appearance of one person—Zhao Dongyang, who changed everything.
Zhao Dongyang once said something very famous, which has been regarded as a guiding light by later sailing enthusiasts, and is still framed and hung on the wall of the sailing club today.
"Those who enjoy yachts are wealthy, while those who enjoy sailing have good taste."
This famous quote, overflowing with a sense of superiority, clearly distinguished between the pure and the muddy, attracting a large number of celebrities and wealthy people who wanted to show off their status and taste to devote themselves to this aristocratic sport. Then, Zhao Dongyang took the opportunity to establish the first sailing club in China, which was regarded as a holy place by the new generation of sailing enthusiasts.
This includes Xu Chuncheng, the president of the sailing club, who is standing here.
Xu Chuncheng said excitedly, "If Teacher Duanmu can invite Zhao Dongyang over, then you can make all the decisions about the sailing club! I won't say a word!"
Holy crap... They sold the sailing club so readily, aren't they afraid the members will have something to say?
Duanmu Ci glanced around and noticed that the other members of the club also had their eyes shining. For these true sailing enthusiasts, if they could receive personal guidance from their "Sailing Godfather" Zhao Dongyang, who would care about the fate of the sailing club? Let whoever wants to care!
Duanmu Ci even suspected that if Xu Chuncheng dared to utter a single word of "no," these commune members who usually fawned over him might turn on him and stage a coup on the spot!
Xu Youmei was the only rational person present besides Duanmu Ci, because she didn't sail, but as a club manager with a certain level of professionalism, she clearly understood what the name "Zhao Dongyang" meant in the sailing world, so she didn't stop her brother's "shameful" behavior of "selling out the country"...
Of course, Zhao Dongyang, who is regarded as a "guiding light" by a large number of die-hard sailing fans in China, may not just be all talk. As a member of the national team, he has indeed performed brilliantly in some international competitions, winning many medals, including quite a few gold medals. He is a model of both reputation and strength.
Moreover, he was a silver medalist at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, demonstrating his formidable strength.
No wonder these young people are ready to make a pilgrimage as soon as they hear these three words.
Xu Chuncheng's excitement subsided slightly. "But how can you prove what you're saying is true?" Damn, an Olympic silver medalist! You think you can just invite her like that? Who do you think you are? This was a very blunt remark, but it was the truth. Olympic champions and silver medalists hold a very high status in China; you can tell just by looking at the news.
Xu Chuncheng looked at Duanmu Ci and asked, "Do you think you can get me by relying on your looks?"
Duanmu Ci smiled and said, "How about this, if I can get Zhao Dongyang to come to the sailing club as your coach, you will have to listen to me—I mean the sailing club will have to listen to me."
“Okay! No problem!” Xu Chuncheng readily agreed.
Inviting an Olympic silver medalist to serve as a coach for an ordinary club at a school sounds a bit outrageous, but it's not without reason or possibility.
Because they are human beings too.
If you were an Olympic champion or runner-up in the 21st century, you would naturally have no shortage of food, clothing, and other necessities. Invitations for advertising endorsements and brand ambassadorships would pour in like snowflakes. Winning an Olympic medal once could sustain you for life, bringing both fame and fortune. But things were different in the last century. Benefits were far less generous then, so Olympic athletes of that era didn't fare as well as they do now.
Of course, there are some exceptions.
Before Duanmu Ci came, he had learned that Zhao Dongyang had previously worked as a coach at Kyoto University in Japan. Clearly, his reputation abroad was only average, unlike his meteoric rise in the Chinese sailing world. Later, due to the setbacks in Sino-Japanese relations, he returned to China and ran a sailing club.
But if he can be offered a high-paying job by a foreign university, why can't he be offered a high-paying job by a Chinese university? Duanmu Ci thinks this is probably a misconception. Everyone thinks that an Olympic silver medalist is too prestigious to accept such an offer. In addition, his status in the sailing world... especially in the amateur sailing world, makes him seem unapproachable. So no one would think that such a high-ranking person would actually do a job as a club coach...
As a result, he was forced to teach at a foreign university...
To be honest, Zhao Dongyang might not have acted that way. If he had the opportunity to coach the national team, he would have gone without hesitation and with great joy. Unfortunately, he didn't have that opportunity. But he loved sailing so much that he couldn't bear to leave it and didn't want to do anything unrelated to it. So when he received an offer from a foreign university, he gritted his teeth and went.
It's like an old captain who doesn't want to leave his ship.
Duanmu Ci could almost picture the expressions on the students' faces if he invited Zhao Dongyang to stand before them and said, "This is your new coach. Say hello to him!" He imagined that even Obama's personal presence wouldn't have the same effect…
Duanmu Ci suddenly felt a sense of anticipation...
He walked out of the sailing club and then made a phone call.
"Jin, please post a task for me on the RAR Club. Say that I want to contact Zhao Dongyang, the silver medalist in the sailing competition at the 1994 Atlanta Olympics, and hope to get help from the members. Get back to me immediately if you have any news! Got it? Okay, that's all."
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
