84 Match List
◎Defend your own half of the zone—and then meet in the final.◎
The badminton team nearby darkened their eyes when they saw the group playing table tennis. They ran over curiously to ask Zhu Qi and his friends about their life in the military control center, and expressed their sympathy for them as they had suffered in the Southeast Sea area for three months.
During lunch, the Sunshine Team of the Bayi Badminton Team surrounded Zhu Qi and asked, "I heard you were promoted to second lieutenant. I'm so envious! You'll have a star on your shoulder, and we'll just have one bar."
Yang Xinrui also said, "We're all going to Moscow soon. If you win a few more championships by then, you'll be a lieutenant the year after next, right?"
Of course, Zhu Qi also hopes that his promotion path will be so simple.
But the old man said that if you want to be promoted from second lieutenant to lieutenant, you have to serve for at least 5 years or more.
Ideals are great, but reality... still requires us to take it step by step.
Originally, the badminton team was still joking that the table tennis team had all turned into black people. But the next day, the head coach of the badminton team also felt that the military training of the table tennis team was very effective, and he also started to organize a mountain climbing activity. He said that he would take all the badminton team members to Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces to rock climbing, climbing a mountain every day for seven days... The badminton team players: Marunouchi!
The military training ended in September 1998 and lasted until April 1999.
Two major events occurred.
One was at the national level. The latest news in newspapers across the country had the title - [97 Zhuhai and Hong Kong officially return].
This incident was actually expected by many people.
Because there have been frequent interactions between the mainland and Zhuhai and Hong Kong during this period, and many people have heard such rumors, they guessed that Zhuhai and Hong Kong would return.
But everyone was still very happy, after all, regaining lost territory was also a symbol of national strength.
Even more than 20 years later, there was a quarrel within NATO over this matter. Some people said that Britain should not have returned Zhuhai Port to Britain. Then Britain directly asked, "Why don't you go and take Zhuhai Port back?" The entire NATO group was silent.
The second thing was within the national table tennis team. After the team went out to play two GTT matches and came back, the list for the Moscow World Games was released.
Men's singles: Lu Yaohan, Song Linzhou.
Men's doubles: Lu Yaohan, Qin Shang.
Women's doubles: Zu Tianjiao, Fang Miao.
Mixed doubles: Zhu Qi, Song Linzhou.
And women's singles: Zhu Qi, Zu Tianjiao.
Mixed Team: (Women's) Zu Tianjiao, Zhu Qi, Fang Miao; (Men's) Lv Yaohan, Song Linzhou, Qin Shang. --One P-card for each male and female team...
Sparring partner: a team and other mobile personnel.
Zhu Qi was very excited when she saw her name displayed behind the women's singles.
Although it was expected, there was still a sense of unrealistic emptiness when I actually saw it.
She was finally... going to compete in the singles event at the World Games.
I really want to shout out in excitement.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh! I'm in Women's Doubles!!!!!!!!!"
Ah Shui roared, then his butt went limp and he rolled back and forth on the ground.
If Maomao hadn't stopped him, Ah Shui would probably have kowtowed to the list posted on the blackboard.
In the last session, A Shui was just a sparring partner and couldn’t even get a P card.
This time, she actually had the opportunity to play in the women's doubles and mixed team. Ah Shui was so moved that she burst into tears and threw herself on Chang Hongxia beside her.
"Thank you to the coaching staff for giving me this opportunity! I will definitely go through fire and water to repay the coaches' kindness..."
Zhu Qi patted Ah Shui's butt as he passed by and said with a smile, "You're not Korean, so how can you be like them and still be indebted to the coaches?"
I don’t know why those little Koreans have so many complicated etiquette.
I heard from athletes in other events that after the baseball team won, they all liked to run to their coaches and kneel down, crying and saying things like "thank you so much!"
It's similar to crying when the Japanese team loses a game.
There are only six people participating in the World Games this time.
All the contestants from the previous session added up to Gao Xiaofeng, Chang Hongxia, Ding Shushu, Jin Lili... there were ten of them in total.
After seeing the list, the General Administration of Sports even called Ren Xinhua to ask, "These athletes...each of them competes in three events. Will it be too much for them to take care of everything?"
Ren Xinhua said: "Judging from their performance in the direct qualifying tournament, the subsequent military training, and a series of competitions, these six players have the highest chance of winning. The other players are not yet at the level to compete in the World Games and need further training."
Unable to activate players with low championship win rates, we can only hope that these six people can withstand the high-intensity game pressure.
For Maomao, Foye found Ren Xinhua and suggested: "Maomao's health is sometimes good and sometimes bad. If she plays women's doubles, will it affect her women's singles? She will also have to play mixed team later. Can she keep up the physical strength?"
Ren Xinhua knew this, of course, and this arrangement was finalized after much deliberation. She said, "I've observed that Ah Shui and Xiao Ba's mixed doubles performance is really not stable enough. They don't have the coordination of the Qilin combination, and Bao Bao and Da Ling won the mixed doubles championship last session, so they have more experience in mixed doubles. If that's the case, Bao Bao won't be able to participate in women's doubles anymore, otherwise she would have to compete in four events, which would be too physically demanding. Fortunately, Maomao and Ah Shui have also played women's doubles together many times, and their winning rate is also very high, comparable to that of Bao Bao and Ah Shui. And the most important thing is-"
The Buddha knew what Ren Xinhua meant. The most important thing was that the next batch of children had not yet been trained.
Sasa and Youyou were the key training targets, but after three years of training, they could only be said to have barely reached the passing line.
Perhaps it was because Zhu Qi in the previous batch was too outstanding and dazzling, which made the coaching staff have more requirements for the next batch of players.
When the World Games list comes out, it's like the college entrance examination results.
Some are happy and some are sad.
Those who got the list were very happy, and those who didn’t make the list were a little sad, but they also knew the gap between themselves and the absolute main players. If they didn’t “get on the bus” this time, they can only wait for the next time.
After the results were released, the coaches' comments were largely the same as the previous session, except that this year was a "three major tournament year," with the World Games, World Championships, and National Table Tennis Championships all stacked together. Everyone had to focus on their key players and prepare for Moscow.
After excitement comes nervousness.
When Ah Shui thought about participating in the World Games and standing on the most prestigious World Games arena, he suddenly became so nervous that he couldn't sleep in the middle of the night. He ran to Zhu Qi's room holding a pillow and wanted to talk to Zhu Qi.
The cat was there too.
Zhu Qi and Maomao were both awake. They were sitting on the edge of the bed talking about the World Games.
A Shui also understood it in his heart.
As the "companion star" of the women's team.
Zhu Qi and Maomao often meet on the field.
In fact, before Maomao had the surgery, Maomao's winning rate was slightly higher, but the year Maomao had the surgery seemed to be a watershed.
During that year, Zhu Qi made rapid progress, and when Maomao came back, Zhu Qi often beat her.
Although Maomao had won the women's singles championship at the Tokyo World Games, no athlete would be satisfied with less accolades. Furthermore, she had put in a lot of effort over the past three years to narrow the gap between herself and Zhu Qi. She wanted to prove that she was as skilled as Zhu Qi and continue to carry the national table tennis team.
But this is also the first time that Zhu Qi has won a place in the women's singles at the World Games.
Zhu Qi has waited for four years from the last Tokyo World Games to now.
No, to be exact.
In order to stand on the singles championship podium of the World Games, Zhu Qi has waited for fifteen years, from the age of six in this life to now.
A Shui knew that both Zhu Qi and Maomao were in very complicated moods.
Completely different from any previous competition.
Four years ago, when sending Maomao to Los Angeles for medical treatment, A Shui joked that four years later the three of them would shine together in Moscow.
At that time it was purely an expectation for the future.
No one knew whether the joke would come true four years later.
Even many athletes cannot be sure whether they will still be on the national team in four years.
Zhu Qi knew why Maomao came to see him.
As the two brightest "companion stars" in the 1990s.
Sooner or later they will have a "fateful battle".
But... Zhu Qi said to Maomao: "No matter what, the national flag on your chest will always be bigger than your name on the back."
Maomao's eyes lit up slightly, and he nodded heavily: "That's what I mean."
She reached out her hand toward Zhu Qi.
The moonlight seeped through the window and flowed into the house, like a light silver stream enveloping the two young women in the house.
It was like a bond of fate, wrapping the destinies of the two of them together and then slowly pulling them closer.
Maomao said: "No matter who stands on the highest podium in the end, we must defend our own half of the zone and lock the gold medal in China. And then-"
"—Then, we'll meet in the finals." Zhu Qi added the last sentence. "When that happens, it will be our own business."
The two people shook hands.
It was as if they had made an indelible life and death contract with each other.
Ah Shui came over and held their hands, saying firmly and seriously, "And me! You can't leave me behind when you play!"
Zhu Qi smiled and said, "I won't abandon you. You are the precious left-handed doubles player of our national table tennis women's team!"
Three shadows were projected onto the wall by the moonlight, leaning against each other and walking side by side on a sports competition path.
After that, every step, every footprint, every step towards a farther arena.
There are friends around.
Zhu Qi suddenly realized that he hadn't had a nightmare for a long time.
She now lives a fulfilling life every day.
There is no extra time to look back.
Regarding what Ah Shui said, that when he went to Jianghuai Province to compete in the Chinese Games, he was approached by that family, Zhu Qi had also thought about this kind of thing.
As her fame grew, based on her understanding of that family, they probably wanted to get a piece of the pie a long time ago.
But he has never come, which must be because the national team or He Qianlu has contributed to the provincial team.
Think about it this way.
Zhu Qi suddenly felt a little emotional.
No matter how hard I tried in my previous life, I couldn't escape from my original family.
On the one hand, it was because I woke up too late. At that time, as the only "cash machine" in the family, every aspect of my life was controlled by the couple and it was difficult to withdraw. My work location, rental housing location, and even the entire trajectory of my life were all controlled by them.
On the one hand, it was because he had been fighting alone in his previous life, and the people working in the club were only colleagues at work and had no private friends.
But now it's different.
Zhu Qi is no longer alone.
Think of this.
Zhu Qi had an idea, so she called home...
/
There are still two months until the Moscow World Games.
The release of the World Games roster does not mean the end of the high-pressure atmosphere within the team, but rather the beginning of real devilish training.
The coaches cannot be idle either. There is a big meeting every three days and a small meeting every day.
Ren Xinhua started a high-intensity work mode again, focusing on a four-year routine that would tire out the coaches, train the players, and even exhaust himself.
As captains of the men's and women's teams, Maomao and Daxiong are often dragged to the coach's office.
Every time he came back, Maomao would bring some news about the foreign teams, and organize some young players to go to the coach's office to watch the game videos of the foreign teams, and imitate the playing styles of the foreign teams to serve as sparring partners for the players who were going to participate in the World Games.
A Shui and Qin Xiaoba have always been sparring partners in the team. Although they have participated in some major competitions before, this is their first time at the World Games.
It was also the first time that he was taken care of by the entire team as an absolute main force.
This feeling...
It's really stressful but I have to hold on.
A Shui no longer complains about being tired and starts practicing as soon as he opens his eyes every day.
Zhu Qi felt that his ears were much quieter.
Ah Shui and Qin Xiaoba were so busy training that they really didn't have any energy to argue with each other.
When Maomao wakes up every morning, the first thing he does is to go to the coaching staff to check in and ask about the subsequent training arrangements.
Zhu Qi and A Shui changed into sportswear and went to the playground to prepare for their morning run.
The absolute main force stood in the front, followed by the sparring partners of Team 1 and the children of Team 2 running behind. Sometimes, while they were running, the team behind would disperse, and a group of people would pant and drag their legs to chase after them.
When Zhu Qi was halfway through the run, he felt his head was wet and raindrops were falling on his face.
Ah Shui took off his coat, put it on his head and said, "It's raining!"
The morning jog was stopped, and the children who didn’t like running cheered and “flew” towards the cafeteria.
Zhu Qi glanced at the stairs leading to the playground and asked in confusion, "Why hasn't Maomao come yet?"
"Maybe the coach kept her there for something." A Shui said casually.
Zhu Qi felt that life was not easy for Maomao.
As the World Games draws closer, Maomao, the captain, has a mountain of things to do. Although Coach Cun and Chang Hongxia help to share some of the burden, Maomao still has to do a lot of things himself.
The two of them were eating in the cafeteria while waiting for Maomao, and they also got two roujiamo for Maomao.
As they were waiting, Maomao suddenly appeared in the cafeteria with a bad look on his face and holding a stack of videotapes.
Ah Shui was already PTSD to Maomao's expression. When he saw Maomao frowning, he felt that something was going to happen, so he quickly asked, "What's wrong? What arrangements does the coach have?"
Maomao placed the videotapes in front of Zhu Qi and said, "This stack contains Jin Lili's game videos."
Because she immigrated to South Korea, Jin Lili has to fight for the world ranking again.
The reason why she was able to participate in the National Table Tennis Championships was because Jin Lili was ranked 58th in the world.
As a result, he disappeared for two years and did not appear in any competition venue. Zhu Qi almost forgot about this person.
"But this year is different. Jin Lili competed in the World Games qualifiers. Her goal was clearly to compete in the Moscow Games. And—" Maomao paused, then added, "Jin Lili defeated Xi Ling'en from North Korea and took first place in the qualifiers."
"Huh?" Ah Shui was startled, swallowed his food, and reluctantly said, "How did she suddenly become so powerful? Did the Korean team give her some magic pill? So she's saying... can she participate in the women's singles in Moscow?"
Maomao nodded, but the most important thing wasn't that Jin Lili could participate, but rather—"You know what? Jin Lili is like a completely different person. Whether it's her serve, her pace, her baseline shots, her backhand system...even her new style of looping and fast breaks, they're all exactly the same as Baobao's."
A Shui looked at Zhu Qi, who was drinking water.
When Zhu Qi received the gazes from A Shui and Maomao, he showed a “…” expression.
"What does exactly the same mean?" Ah Shui was confused.
"That's exactly what I mean. Didn't you feel it last time we played the mixed team table tennis match? Jin Lili was imitating Zhu Qi's style, but back then everyone thought she was only copying the surface. But this time it's different..." Maomao's voice became slow, heavy, and very low. "Everything, pay attention, I mean everything! It's exactly the same as how Bao Bao defeated Xi Ling'en. That match wasn't even between Jin Lili and Xi Ling'en, it was just a replica of Bao Bao and Xi Ling'en."
"What?! Is Jin Lili crazy?" Ah Shui screamed. "How dare she... just abandon the tactical system she'd practiced for over a decade? Completely change herself and become another person? Is she sane?"
Zhu Qi was speechless.
Can this Korean "head-changing" technology be used in table tennis matches?
"Could it be that Han Taiyang's idea? Han Taiyang had studied with Coach Da He before, learning all his techniques and tactics. So he wants to create another 'Bao Bao' just like Coach Da He did with Bao Bao?" Ah Shui speculated, confused. "But what's Jin Lili thinking? Is she afraid that her technique changes will fail and that she'll lose her old tactical system? Is she just trying to get revenge on the Chinese team? Would she make such a sacrifice?"
After Ah Shui finished speaking, he muttered to himself, "I was wondering why Jin Lili hasn't come out for so long. It looks like she's been in seclusion improving her skills."
Zhu Qi speculated, "According to Korean custom, new players are first assigned to practice as sparring partners. And since Jin Lili is a former Chinese player, they'll definitely have her imitate the Chinese team's players first. She initially imitated my playing style, gaining an advantage over the Korean team and securing qualification for the All-China Mixed Team. Although she ultimately failed to defeat us, it still gave the Korean team hope, so Han Taiyang simply had Jin Lili imitate me completely."
Maomao and A Shui didn't say anything, they both agreed with Zhu Qi's guess.
Ah Shui bit his chopsticks, a worried look on his face. "So how well did she imitate him? Is it really completely the same?"
Zhu Qi didn't think anyone could do this. She comforted Ah Shui, "It's absolutely impossible for a person to completely abandon their original virgin skills. No matter how complex the training is, they can transform themselves into a different person. But the things they learned from the past are already engraved in their souls and won't be easily discarded."
But then again.
Zhu Qi felt that Jin Lili was really willing to spend a lot of money.
In order to keep up with the times, Daxiong has also carried out systematic technological reforms.
But his reforms at that time were also based on his original technical foundation.
But Jin Lili and Zhu Qi have had completely different training methods since they were young, and their tactical systems are also very different.
If you want to turn Jin Lili into a completely different person, it would be a complete transformation!
Besides, transformation also has risks. Jin Lili is so bold... Zhu Qi is a little curious.
How far can she go to win?
Although Zhu Qi didn't like Jin Lili, when they were in the national team, although they lived on the seventh floor together, they spoke no more than ten sentences to each other in three years.
Knowing that Zhu Qi and Jin Lili had conflicts, Xu Dong also deliberately avoided them from getting along.
But then again.
Jin Lili risked either hitting rock bottom or reshaping her life, betting her entire career on the Moscow World Games...which made Zhu Qi look at her with a slightly higher regard.
Bad news comes one after another.
On this side, Jin Lili was fully recovered, and on the other side, Jamie's blood report application was approved. His testosterone level was determined to be around 6 nanomoles per liter, and he was determined to be able to participate in women's competitions.
The first week of August 1998.
The world has sounded the clarion call from all directions.
The five rings slowly rise in Moscow.
The collision of ice and fire.
The chaos is transformed into a competition field for thousands of athletes.
Athletes wearing various sportswear entered the venue one after another.
The same sound came from the television in every household.
——"The highly anticipated opening ceremony of the Moscow World Games is about to begin. The song "Katyusha" resounds throughout the Lenin Central Stadium in Moscow, the former Soviet Union. Now entering the camera is the Chinese team. There are some familiar faces who also represented the Chinese team in the last Tokyo World Games. A total of 134 Chinese athletes are competing in this World Games. May our Chinese people live up to their mission and bravely move forward!"
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