Cool kids from the Chinese swimming team, or the "post-90s" generation, have snatched 15 gold medals out of the 20 titles China won at the East Asian Games. Born in 1990s, these genius youngsters forge ahead with vim, vigor and victory.
Equipped with fancy MP3s and cell phones, these smart kids got enough reasons to be confident in the waves.
"Youth is our greatest asset," 18-year-old Jiao Liuyang swept two gold medals and one silver medal in women's butterfly finals at EAG, after smashing both Asian and Chinese record in 50 and 100meters butterfly in April. "We have a long way to go as well as plenty of opportunities. We are a generation full of fight."
18-year-old Sun Yang overtook China's top male swimmer Zhang Lin in men's 1500m freestyle swimming at the National Games in October. Seizing another gold medal at this EAG in the same event, the promising star was more than satisfied with this result, "I've joined the professional team for only five years. I don't think there are many swimmers who have better performance at my age."
"If you want it, just go for it." said Chen Huijia, the 19-year-old new "breaststroke queen" in China. This time Chen bagged two gold medals in women's 50 and 100 meters breaststroke finals, beating the games' record in both.
They've carried forward some good spirits from the National Team.
Born in 1990, Guo Fan took a silver medal in 100 meters butterfly at the game. She stated, "Each of us has a unique character but we are absolutely serious about training. We've got a strong sense of honor."
Proud of what he had achieved, Sun was most grateful about his coach Zhu Zhigen, "Despite all the painstaking efforts, I've been fortunate to be with such a good coach. He helps me with every step I move forward."
Young as "Post-90" kids are, they have their own way to deal with gains and losses.
Chinese female swimmer Tang Yi withdrew from the race Tuesday after her swimsuit split in the pool. Her teammate Guo Fan was not surprised on hearing the news, "It doesn't really matter. My swimsuits have burst open once. It's not a usual thing but just take it easy."
Jiao Liuyang took second again while competing with Liu Zige, her teammate and top female butterfly swimmer. She pouted her lips and said, "I swear I'm desperate to beat her before every competition."
She was honest when she finished first in 100 meters butterfly, "To tell you the truth, this result is far from ideal. I made a rare technical mistake and I choked. I was struggling in the latter half."
Sun Yang's coach Zhu Zhigen showed modesty while commenting the surging stars and said the "post-90s" kids should work harder to improve. "These 'post-90s' kids are 'difficult to manage', he smiled, "The overall quality of our athletes has been better generation by generation. Those kids have a wider scope of knowledge and better internet skills. My suggestion is to coach them according to their different characters and give them more space."
Yao Zhengjie, head coach of China's squad stated, "At this EAG the 'post-90s' swimmers are doing a great job. They have made sufficient progress in swimming techniques as well as racing experience. We'll make more efforts to cultivate young athletes and I hope they'll achieve more."
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