Source: Xinhua Daily Telecom
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World Champion "Dad Xu", burning a lifetime by the swimming pool
Follow the Chinese swimming gold medal coach, Ye Shiwen Fu Yuanhui Xu Jiayu's mentor Xu Guoyi
Xu Guoyi and Ye Shiwen took a photo. The picture comes from Ye Shiwen’s Weibo
As soon as he stood by the swimming pool, Xu Guoyi felt spirited. Photography: Li Jierui
"I would rather lie happily by the swimming pool than lie on the hospital bed, looking at the ceiling, counting minutes and seconds, and waiting to die of depression."
He was predicted by doctors that he could live for at most 3 years, but he never cared about his illness. Instead, he lived for 5 years in a vivid way: guardian team members, plateau training, overseas training and competitions, participating in the Rio Olympics with illness, participating in the opening ceremony of the Tianjin National Games in 2017, taking the oath to represent the coach, participating in the Asian Games in 2018... In the countdown stage of his life, he arranged his life in this way.
At 4:09 am on July 19, 2020, Chinese swimming coach Xu Guoyi died of illness in Beijing at the age of 50. He realized his ideal: to burn his life for his beloved swimming career.
Xu Guoyi is originally from Zhejiang Ningbo and has been working as a swimming coach in 1994. In the past 26 years of coaching, he has successively trained many famous swimming players such as Ye Shiwen, Xu Jiayu, Chen Huijia and .
Among them, Ye Shiwen won two gold medals in the women's 200m individual medley and women's 400m individual medley at the 2012 London Olympics, setting a world record; Xu Jiayu won the silver medal in the men's 100m backstroke at the 2016 Rio Olympics, and won the 100m backstroke championship in the 2017 and 2019 World Championships.
There is a passage in the obituary of the Chinese Swimming Association -
"'Dedication to China's swimming is my job. All the hard work is worth it and willing.' Coach Xu Guoyi said this and did it."
"earned" every day, he has to be by the swimming pool
"Are you here? Try the specially made summer and dehumidification tea in our team." The last time I met Xu Guoyi was on the morning of June 28, 2019. In order to prepare for the World Swimming Championships in Gwangju, South Korea in mid-July, the reporter went to the national swimming team to explore the camp.
As soon as he walked into the steaming swimming pool, he saw him standing next to the water dispenser, holding a huge water cup. I can't tell what supplements are inside, it's dark. But he still smiled and greeted the reporter enthusiastically. The reporter drank the summer tea he made, and the bitterness remains until now.
At that time, Xu Guoyi and his team members returned from training abroad in the United States for only two or three days. I remember that his complexion was a little dark and his face was a little swollen, but when it comes to training and the upcoming World Championships, he was full of energy and talked endlessly.
However, 10 days later, when the national swimming team held a media open class, he did not show up. It is said that he was hospitalized because of his physical discomfort. He went to the pool in a wheelchair for training a few days ago.
He missed the Gwangju World Swimming Championships and could only watch the broadcast on TV on the hospital bed: his disciple Xu Jiayu won the "King of Men's 100-meter Backstroke" for the rest of the time, and Ye Shiwen was reborn like a "phoenix Nirvana", and won two silver medals in the World Championships. The two disciples paid tribute to the master at the same time, "I want to hang the medal on Director Xu's neck the most."
Xu Guoyi never took his illness seriously, although he was very sick. At the end of 2015, he led a team to the Haitang Training Base in Kunming, and felt headaches and nausea from time to time. He thought he could take some medicine to resist it, but he didn't expect that after being forced to go to the hospital for examination, it turned out to be the fourth level of intracranial malignant glioma - the highest level of glioma.
He had to leave the pool and be hospitalized for treatment. He has never left the team for such a long time. Before going to the operating table, he did not tell the team members about his condition, for fear of affecting the children's preparation for the Rio Olympics.
The operation was very successful, but the doctor clearly told him, his family and the swimming team leader: if you get this disease, ordinary people can't last for 3 years.
As the helmsman of Zhejiang Swimming, Zhang Yadong, deputy director of Zhejiang Provincial Sports Bureau and former head coach of China Swimming Team, was very entangled: "As a friend, I hope he can rest with peace of mind; as a colleague, I know that the team members cannot live without him.His attitude was very firm: go back to the swimming pool to lead the team members. We had to satisfy his wishes, provided that we could not overwork. "
Xu Guoyi actively undergoes postoperative recovery. Five months later, he returned to the team and devoted himself to the intense Olympic preparations. A baseball cap covered the clear scar on his head.
"I earned every day in the next! I want to be worthy of my athletes. Since I am standing by the pool, I will do my best. Dedicate yourself and exchange your life for your achievements. I will never live without the swimming pool in my life. "
In the 2016 Rio Olympics, Xu Jiayu won the silver medal in the men's 100m backstroke competition, achieving a "zero breakthrough" in the Olympic medals of Chinese men's backstroke. Xu Guoyi was full of regrets: if he hadn't been delayed by illness for several months, his disciples would have won a few more Olympic medals or even gold medals.
is not a champion athlete, he can be a champion coach
Xu Guoyi has a gentle and elegant personality and speaks slowly. He likes to study swimming training, and his peers call him "Zhiduoxing" and "Xiao Zhuge". He compared the relevant data of many disciples and major opponents over the years to support the concept of "technology first". In his opinion, many disciples he coached are "technical players", and the winning tricks of Xu Jiayu and Ye Shiwen are even more "technical". In
training, what he talked about most about technology with athletes is technology. "Jiayu, pay attention to turning shoulders, and use the water in your hands like this..." "Xiao Ye..." Do action demonstration while saying it.
"Speak without being humble, Xu Jiayu's backstroke technique is the world's number one. Coaches should discover and solve athletes’ problems with bright eyes. Technology is always the first priority. Good technology does not cost physical fitness, and can also ensure that athletes have a healthy and coordinated body. "His philosophy has been recognized and appreciated by domestic and foreign coaching colleagues.
In addition to "technology first", Xu Guoyi also summarized the "four good" that outstanding athletes must have, namely good health, good conditions, good understanding, and good personality. With a good personality and qualities, we can give full play to the advantages of physical conditions, focus, self-discipline and persistence.
Xu Guoyi claimed that he was not very successful when he was an athlete, and his best result was third in the country in medley. "But I can be the champion coach. I think I am still very talented when it comes to being a coach. A good coach requires insight, thinking and talent, and of course, it also requires a thousand-mile horse. Both Bole and Qianli Horse are hard to come by, and the chances of meeting each other are very small. Once you meet, you will definitely stand out! ”
Xu Guoyi said: "I like to think about the rules and techniques of swimming events. It's very interesting. No matter whether the competition is successful or failed, I will reflect on it. I will think about every competition and every lesson. My ideal is to train men's and women's Olympic champions. Now we, Xiao Ye, have won the women's Olympic champion. The hope for men's Olympic champion lies with Xu Jiayu, and the dragon and phoenix are auspicious. I hope my disciples can become great athletes. "
In daily training, Xu Guoyi consumes a lot of physical and mental strength, and he still challenges his limits after he gets sick: he never leaves the stopwatch during water class, always follows the athletes by the swimming pool. The training plans of several team members in the group are different, so he walks back and forth, chasing the team members to see the skills and timing, and he has to walk nearly 20,000 steps a day. Only when the training is over will he sit down and rest; pay attention to protecting athletes during physical training, and intervene in time when they find dangerous situations; when they are still thinking about the athletes' situation and data analysis, and adjust the training plan and plan at any time. In addition, he must take care of athletes in all aspects around the clock, and also educate athletes in all aspects such as their parents...
Xu Guoyi has "high standards and strict requirements" for himself, hoping to drive the athletes' passion. "I can't control whether I am sick or not. I can only work and eat. But the coach must have aura and momentum. Even if I feel uncomfortable, from the moment I enter the swimming pool, I am full of energy and fighting spirit, and shout out every 'preparation,' in a loud voice! While my body can still bear it, I have to do more.I want to tell my disciples with practical actions that I can enjoy the fun of swimming and be confident in the future so happily, and they have no reason to give up their efforts. "
He has no children, and his disciples are all children
In the eyes of his disciples, Xu Guoyi in life is his father, he is a strict teacher during training, and he is a spiritual pillar on the field. He and his lover Lou Xia do not have their own children, but there is a "big family" - the disciples are their children.
Ye Shiwen was Lou Xia's favorite disciple when he was in the Zhejiang team, and after entering the national team, he followed Xu Guoyi; Xu Jiayu studied under Xu Guoyi when he was 13 years old. Other disciples also trained with the couple since he was in his 10s, and spent more time together than his parents. "They are all my children, and each child is a work I have cultivated since I was a child. When they came, they were a piece of white paper, and I wanted to turn them into collection treasures. "
Dad Xu was so arrogant that he loved and feared him. "There is no order without rules. When a child has problems, I must be a "evil person". Strict requirements are true care and responsibility. "
When he was young, Xu Jiayu was addicted to games and did not rest on time at night. He was thrown into the computer twice by Xu Guoyi. Since then, he never dared to touch the "red line". After the 2017 World Swimming Championships, after being crowned the king of backstroke for the first time, he was anxious to find Xu Guoyi by the warm-up pool and plunged into the coach's arms. Xu Guoyi drankly rubbed his disciple's face and praised him as if he was a child: "Not bad, champion, congratulations! "
Xu Guoyi is not an extreme person. While strictly disciplined his disciples, he knows more about humanized management, gives them enough respect and space, truly considers them, and gives rational suggestions.
In the growth path of Ye Shiwen, he spent a lot of effort: he should train when he was not famous, and when she became a young Grand Slam winner, he should focus on his thoughts. The top priority is to correct his mentality and reject external temptations. Ye Shiwen returned from the London Olympics with reputation, and various advertising endorsements and social activities were invited. Xu Guoyi and Xiaoye's parents all refused after reaching an agreement, because she was only 16 years old and the road ahead is still long. Don’t pursue personal interests too early.
will inevitably be a trough after the peak of his state. When Ye Shiwen fell into the "worries of adolescence" and his grades declined due to weight problems, Xu Guoyi did not give up and always accompanied her. He also took a different approach and encouraged Ye Shiwen to go out of the swimming team, go to college, arm himself with knowledge, and feel the lives of his peers.
When Ye Shiwen asked to return to the swimming pool, he even dissuaded her. "I hope she enjoys her life and broadens her horizons. If she doesn’t have a higher pursuit of swimming, don’t come back. After all, she is the youngest Grand Slam contestant, and won all the Olympic champions and world champions. But she was very persistent and had to go back to the swimming pool. Then we said, "I won't urge you to train like before, force you to train. Everything depends on your inner love. She just needs to enjoy the training and enjoy the competition happily. "In this way, Ye Shiwen regained her confidence step by step and returned to the peak of her state.
In Xu Guoyi's warm "family", the family atmosphere was harmonious and there was never any discord between master and apprentice. So when he learned that he had passed away, all the disciples cried. Children who had retired and were far away were eager to book tickets to Beijing.
Ye Shiwen, who had always insisted on training during the epidemic, said: "I have always been looking forward to a miracle that will happen. I feel that one day you will recover and appear by our side again. You taught me to grow up, take me to the highest podium, and accompany me at every important moment in my life. It is also you who taught us to be strong, focus, and never give up. ...You can no longer accompany me and protect me in the future road, but no matter the highlights or the darkest moments, you are always the brightest light in my heart, guiding me forward! Dad Xu, I will always love you and miss you forever. "
Fu Yuanhui, who had been training with Xu Guoyi for a long time, believed in Xu Daddy Xu's father the most. When Xu Guoyi was sick, she was anxious and insomnia; when he came back, she was resurrected with full blood. At the Rio Olympics, she won bronze and became famous overnight."He is as confident and courageous as his father. He usually talks a lot with me and knows me very well. With him here, I am not afraid of anything and will move forward bravely in training and competitions. He is a real man." Fu Yuanhui said.
Xu Jiayu vowed to bring back the Olympic gold medal: "Director Xu, please feel free to worry, students remember clearly what you expect from students. When Gwangju won the championship again, you told me on the sickbed that this is nothing, Tokyo is your stage. Director Xu is well, and in the midsummer next year, take the gold medal home to see you!"
romance is left for the swimming pool, and his smile is always bright
"His only hobby is to lead the team members to train. As long as he works for a day, I will accompany him for a day." His lover Lou Xia knows her husband best. This tacit understanding of swimming couples are called "golden partners" and "relative couples of Condor Heroes".
When Lou Xia was an athlete, she was the first swimmer in Zhejiang Province to participate in the Olympics. She was also very outstanding after becoming a coach and was fully qualified to join the national team to coach. However, because of her husband-to-wife relationship with Xu Guoyi, she "sacrificed" herself and stayed behind to the Zhejiang team for a long time to coach, dig up and train seedlings, and sent them to the national team. The two teams together to create a "assembly line" for championship training.
Lou Xia likes romance, but Xu Guoyi never learns it. When they got married in 1997, the two had no wedding dress, no ceremony, and no honeymoon. The photos on their marriage certificates were spliced together. The only time the couple went abroad was a 5-day and 4-night cruise, because this would not affect his team members.
"He left romance to the swimming pool, and when he worked, he was like a 'wild horse'. He always thought about the team members and training." Lou Xia never complained about her husband's love. In order to support her husband's lifelong "pool romance", Lou Xia entered the national team after the Rio Olympics, taking care of Xu Guoyi in her life, and chasing him to take medicine on time to rest; on the training ground, the two fought side by side to prepare for the Tokyo Olympics together.
Two years ago, Xu Guoyi appeared on the stage of "Reader" and read Wang Meng's "Life is Burning", dedicated to children who love swimming career. That article perfectly interprets his life creed: "A person is an energy, and a person's life is burning, which is the full release of energy. Energy should be exerted, the more it burns, the better..."
Now, in the National Team Swimming Pool, the honor list of coaches and athletes is displayed on the corridor walls entering and leaving the pool. Xu Guoyi in the photo still has a bright smile. "Burn yourself and light up others", his spirit will surely inspire Chinese swimmers to continue moving forward. (Reporters Zhou Xin, Xia Liang)
Editor in charge: Shi Ge
