Many people normally forget what they said months ago. However, shooting official Gao Zhidan well remembers his words to Guo Wenjun, Chinese women's air pistol gold medalist on Sunday.

In last November at China's City Games, Guo won the gold in women's air pistol.

Looking at the young lady standing on the champion platform with dangling Mickey Mouse earrings, Gao said, "Four years ago, Zhu Qinan was standing on the same platform, and he is Olympic gold medalist now. I hope this platform could lift you to a new stage as well."

He was right.

At the Beijing Olympic Games, 24-year-old Guo from China's northwestern Shaanxi Province edged veteran shooters Natalia Paderina and Jasna Sekaric, smashed Olympic record in women's 10-meter air pistol, and won China the second shooting gold medal.

When she waved on the Olympic podium, it was like a replay of the scene nearly ten months ago, except that her earrings were gone.

Chinese markswoman Guo Wenjun smashed the Olympic record in women's 10-meter air pistol with 492.3 points, winning the second shooting gold medal for China at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall on Sunday morning. [Xinhua]

Guo was selected into the Xi'an physical training school in 1997, when she was 13 years old.

She loved shooting, but not so much for dull and tiring trainings.

No pains, no gains.

At the fifth City Games, she only finished ninth. Although her talent enabled her to the provincial shooting team, she didn't have the chance to the National Games.

The disappointed girl thought of retiring. In 2005, she went to a department store to sell sport suits.

"During that three months, I tasted the hardship of life," she recalled.

She had to be obedient to the boss, getting on well with all kinds of people.

"In comparison, training is a blessing," she said.

Thus a more diligent Guo returned. In 2006, she entered the national shooting squad.

The following months saw her win national championships and becoming a rising star at the Doha Asian Games.

Wang Yifu, head coach of the national shooting team, believed that Guo has more potentials to tap. "She carries our hope of women's pistol events," he said.

Women's pistol has brought glory to China. However, the lack of young athletes became a bottleneck in the event's development in recent years. In 2005, no Chinese markswomen mounted on world champion platforms.

When Guo beat world champion Tao Luna in the Olympic selecting contest, the coach was delighted for find a shooter with "really stable performances".

He waved his fist in ecstasy seeing Guo finish her last shot.

But for Gao Zhidan, he seemed relieved to see that his encouraging words worked. Smiling broadly and shaking hands with the new Olympic champion, the lips of Guo moved.

Spectators couldn't hear what he said, but they might see into his mind: "You see, my prophecy has come true."

(Xinhua News Agency August 10, 2008)