Xinhua News Agency Tokyo, August 28 (Reporter Ye Shan) On social platforms, the name used by disabled triathlete Wang Jiachao is "Astro Boy." "The English meaning of Astro Boy is atom, which is small but very explosive. Although I am short, I am also very strong." He explained.
Wang Jiachao (middle) during the game. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xiong Qi
"My dream is to once again enter the Olympic stage through triathlon." This 29-year-old former swimmer from Yunnan has participated in three Paralympic Games . In the swimming event A total of 1 gold, 4 silver and 1 bronze were obtained.
In the PTS4 level competition of the Tokyo Paralympic Triathlon held on the 28th, Wang Jiachao realized his dream and stepped onto the stage of the Paralympic Games again as a triathlete. Although he ranked fourth 30 seconds behind the bronze medalist, Spaniard Sanchez Palomero, and missed the podium, the "one-armed iron man" still looked very optimistic, with the same confidence as usual on his face A calm smile.
The Paralympic triathlon consists of a 750-meter swim, a 20-kilometer bicycle and a 5-kilometer run. Each leg is half of the Olympic triathlon schedule. The weather in Tokyo was hot on the day of the competition, and moving and changing clothes when switching between different events was an additional test for athletes with physical disabilities.
Wang Jiachao (second from right) prepares to enter the water before the game. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xiong Qi
Wang Jiachao ranked fourth in swimming, his dominant event, with a time of 11 minutes and 15 seconds. On the third lap of the bicycle race , he once rushed to third place. In the subsequent competition, he remained in fourth place smoothly, and finally finished the race in 1 hour, 4 minutes and 54 seconds.
"The world kissed me with pain, but I responded with songs." Wang Jiachao's sports career began with an accident when he was 5 years old. That year, he lost his left arm due to a high-voltage electricity accident, but he learned to swim in the village river with one hand. In 2001, 10-year-old Xiao Jiachao was selected into the Yunnan Provincial Disabled Swimming Team and became a national disabled swimmer two years later.
In 2015, Wang Jiachao officially retired from the provincial team, but in order to continue to realize his Paralympic dream, he did not stop challenging himself and decided to switch to triathlon.
Wang Jiachao is in the game. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xiong Qi
When he first came into contact with triathlon, Wang Jiachao didn’t even know how to participate in the competition. His training consisted of commuting by bicycle and running 6 kilometers every day. God rewards hard work, and he relied on his tenacious will and strict self-discipline to reach the third place in the world.
Wang Jiachao said that in order to prepare for the Tokyo Paralympics, he trained an average of 22 hours a week. Many times he would secretly increase his training without recording it on his watch or uploading it to a platform where coaches could see it. "Including my time for 'stealing', my weekly training time will be about 30 hours."
If fate played a cruel joke on Wang Jiachao, he had to work harder to resist the challenges of life when he was a child. Unfortunately, every day after choosing triathlon, he is fighting for a stronger self and a freer life.
"My optimism is not born, but comes from practice. I actually had a low self-esteem after losing my left arm when I was a child, and I actually still had a low self-esteem after winning the Paralympic swimming championship in 2012," he said.
Data picture: Wang Jiachao takes a photo after the award ceremony in the men's 200-meter individual medley SM8 final at the 2012 London Paralympic Games. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Yang Shiyao
"What really changed me later was going to college and starting to get into triathlon." Wang Jiachao said that he overcame many difficulties in the process of participating in international competitions and met many "triathlon friends" at home and abroad. I received help from many people without asking for anything in return. "It can be said that if I had not chosen triathlon, I would not be who I am now."
The accidents in life cannot make this "one-armed iron man" succumb. His confidence, optimism, tenacious quality and extraordinary efforts have made the Wang family Chao has made leaps and bounds again and again. Now he is starting his journey again in the Paralympics, continuing to fight for his dreams and living for his love.
Source: Xinhua News Agency
