At 23 a swimmer should be entering her prime, but yesterday marked
the retirement China's Olympic and World champion Luo Xuejuan.
Speaking at a ceremony in her hometown Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, the "Breaststroke Queen"
confirmed she had to leave the pool due to poor health.
"Life comes first. It is more important than other things," she
said. "Everyone knows that I am a very competitive person, but I
have no other choice than to quit the sport. I am so grateful for
what the national team has brought to me in the past years. Now I
am leaving. But as an Olympic champion, I hope I can do something
else for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. I also wish the national
swimming team the best," she said.
Luo, who has suffered from heart problems since the 2004 Athens
Olympics where she claimed China's sole swimming gold for China and
was seen as a medal hope for 2008, revealed she planned to study at
Peking University.
Speculation on Luo's future had mounted of late, as stories of
heart problems and disputes with coaches were plastered in the
press. Just days ago, national team coach Zhang Yadong dismissed
the reports of Luo's likely retirement.
Confusion reigned at the ceremony when doctors were unwilling to
give exact details of Luo's heart problem.
A team doctor, Han, said only: "For an athlete there is a risk
of danger. But for an ordinary person, there is no problem."
Luo fainted twice during the Athens Games, and doctors diagnosed
her as having a potassium deficiency. However, problems continued,
and after fainting during training last November doctors diagnosed
her as suffering from either exhaustion or heart trouble.
"She failed to get fit. If she continues training, nobody wants
to take the responsibility if there is a danger to her life," said
Zhang.
An emotional Zhang, who witnessed Luo's development from a young
hopeful into a star, was unable to control his emotions at the
ceremony.
"It is so hard for me to say something about her retirement," he
said tearfully. "We have been together for over ten years. We
didn't want her to leave the pool."
"It is definitely a big loss to the sport in China," said Shang
Xiutang, deputy director of the Swimming Administrative Center, at
the ceremony. "Luo's absence will also effect our preparations for
the Beijing Olympics. We are not willing to accept her retirement
but we have to respect her decision."
Luo's decision will come as a crippling blow to the national
swimming team's preparations for the 2008 Beijing Games, where at
least one gold medal is expected.
Teenagers Ji Liping and Wang Qun are two athletes hoping to
replace Luo as the leader in women's breaststroke.
Ji, 19, was crowned 50m breaststroke champion and finished
second in the 100m at the Doha Asian Games, which Luo did not
attend, while 16-year-old Wang scored an impressive win over Luo in
the 2005 East Asian Games.
But their personal bests are still way behind Luo's, not to
mention her world record-holding rival from Australia, Leisel
Jones.
Luo has established herself as the most prominent Chinese
swimmer in the world stage, winning one Olympic gold, five world
championship titles and numerous Asian and national titles. To
recognize Luo's devotion to the sport, the Swimming Administrative
Centre presented her an award for her "Outstanding Contribution to
Chinese Swimming".
Luo's factbox
Date of birth: January 26, 1984
Place of birth: Zhejiang
Weight: 62 kg
Height: 1.68 m
Coach: Zhang Yadong
High performances:
2000: Olympic Games - 8th 200m breaststroke
2001: World Championships - 1st 50m breaststroke, 1st 100m
breaststroke, 3rd 200m breaststroke, 3rd 4x100m medley relay
2003: World Championships - 1st 50m breaststroke, 1st 100m
breaststroke, 1st 4x100m medley relay
2004: Olympic Games - 1st 100m breaststroke, 4th 4x100m medley
relay
2005: World Championships - 5th 50m breaststroke
(China Daily January 30, 2007)
