Success comes to those who perserve

Chen Yanqing of China takes a lift during women's weightlifting 58kg Group A competition of Beijing 2008 Olympic Games at Beijing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics Gymnasium in Beijing, China, Aug. 11, 2008. Chen Yanqing claimed the title with a total result of 244kg in the event.[Wu Wei/Xinhua]

 

For Chen Yanqing, defending her Olympic title was hard won after announcing her retirement three times in the past eight years.

She first made her name in 1997 by claiming the clean and jerk and total golds in the world championships and ruled the category by continuously smashing world records.

Despite ranking number one in the 58 kg class, Chen missed the 2000 Sydney Olympics as China did not enter in that class due to an overestimation of her major rival, Ri Song Hui from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Dismayed, Chen announced her retirement in 2001, after scoring only a bronze at the National Games in Guangzhou that year.

"Back in 2000, I was only 21. I was at the best age of an athlete. I didn't know what I should be up to next after missing out the Sydney Games. I chose to go to college."

But Chen came out of retirement just two years later, to prepare for the 10th National Games held in her native Jiangsu Province. She scored another bronze, and qualified for the national weightlifting team for the Sydney Olympics.

In 2004, Suzhou-native Chen finally pocketed her first Olympic gold and defeated rival Ri by 5 kg in Athens.

With her Olympic dream fulfilled, Chen again announced retirement in 2004, but returned for the 2005 National Games where she broke three world records.

Her third retirement lasted less than a month. Chen qualified for the Olympics after winning another national championship in her third comeback in April after her coach Cao Xinmin's repeated pleas.

"I want to thank my coach Cao for accompanying me for 18 years," she said, "Without him, I would never have made such achievements."

"If the Athens gold belongs to me, this one belongs to all the people supporting me," she said after claiming her second Olympic gold.