Home
News
Medal Tally
Photos
Video
Team China
Ticketing

Olympic failure my lowest point: Liu

相鑌
0 CommentsPrint E-mail China Daily, November 26, 2010
Adjust font size:

Two years after suffering a huge public backlash following his injury-forced withdrawal from the Beijing Olympics, hurdler Liu Xiang can finally face his demons and is ready to move on.

"I used to be unwilling to mention what happened (in Beijing) because it would take me into a deep depression," Liu told China Daily on Thursday.

"But that shadow isn't following me around anymore. I think more about the demons facing me now when I race. I know that I can only conquer them if I face them head on," said Liu, who is determined to recapture his Olympic crown at London 2012 after winning his third Asiad title in the 110m on Wednesday.

China's first track-and-field superstar went from being a national hero to one of the biggest disappointments of the 2008 Olympics when an Achilles injury robbed him of the chance to defend his gold medal in the 110m hurdles at the Bird's Nest.

However after rebuilding himself physically, in the wake of surgery in the United States, and mentally, he raced home in 13.09 seconds this week to appease his fans in Guangzhou and put the past behind him.

He said the self-reflection that followed the injury was part of a useful healing process.

"It was a valuable experience for me. It helped me to understand myself more clearly," said the 27-year-old.

"Sometimes I think I even enjoy that kind of feeling. It teaches me a lot. I wouldn't truly know the feeling of failure if I hadn't gone through all that.

"Now I know I can be strong again," said Liu, who set the world record of 12.88 seconds in 2006 and was crowned world champion one year later.

His time still stands as the Asian record, but he surrendered the world record to Cuba's Dayron Robles by the narrowest of margins just before the Beijing Games.

Liu's first comeback race after the Olympics, at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix in September 2009, suggested he still had enough fire in his belly to climb back up to the top. The Shanghai native ran a wind-aided 13.15 but was narrowly beaten by then world No 2 Terrence Trammell of the United States.

Public expectations subsequently began to build up again, but Liu was underwhelming at the National Games and Asian Championships that followed, despite claiming both titles.

Things got worse this year.

He only managed a seventh-place finish at the world indoor championships in March in the 60m hurdles, and bronze at the Diamond League meet in Shanghai in May, where he clocked 13.40 and was beaten by teammate Shi Dongpeng for the first time.

Liu had to deal with a skeptical media, as well as a demanding public.

"I realized I had to try and bury some things and start again from scratch," he said.

"I know there are some people who criticized me and doubted me, but I couldn't let those things get under my skin. I know what I need to do and what I can achieve in the future."

He said winning at the Guangzhou Asian Games, his best result after the 2008 Olympics, was a major confidence boost.

"I always used to finish inside 13.10 before the injury, but I didn't expect I would be able to achieve that again right now," he said.

"After the Beijing Games, I thought it would be difficult for me to run near 13 seconds again, but now I know anything's possible.

"The (Achilles tendon) injury still hasn't totally healed, but this is something I may just have to deal with for the rest of my running career, and I don't think it will have much of an effect on my training or competitions," he said.

He plans to skip the indoor season at the beginning of next year and return to action for the outdoor events after May following intensive winter training.

Liu will compete in six to eight events next year, including overseas races in Europe and the United States, said his coach Sun Haiping.

Print E-mail Bookmark and Share

Go to Forum >>0 Comments

No comments.

Add your comments...

  • User Name Required
  • Your Comment
  • Racist, abusive and off-topic comments may be removed by the moderator.
Send your storiesGet more from China.org.cnMobileRSSNewsletter
Site Map | RSS | Newsletter | Work for Us
Copyright ? China.org.cn. All Rights Reserved 京ICP證 040089號(hào)
主站蜘蛛池模板: 五月丁香六月综合av| 免费久久精品国产片香蕉| 2018国产大陆天天弄| 好猛好紧好硬使劲好大国产| 久久久精品2019中文字幕2020| 欧美乱xxxxx| 国产视频福利在线| 一二三四视频在线观看韩国电视剧| 日本a级片免费看| 亚洲综合激情九月婷婷| 精品福利一区二区三区免费视频 | 乱亲玉米地初尝云雨| 欧美又粗又长又爽做受| 亚洲永久精品ww47| 色费女人18毛片a级毛片视频| 国产成人综合日韩精品无码| 天堂www网最新版资源官网| 国内精品伊人久久久久网站| 久久国产精品99国产精| 最近中文字幕mv免费高清视频7| 亚洲国产欧美在线人成精品一区二区 | 国产成人永久免费视频| 亚洲va在线va天堂成人| 国产精品无码不卡一区二区三区| 三极片在线观看| 搞av.com| 久久久久久国产精品mv| 日本成人免费在线视频| 久久精品国产亚洲av瑜伽| 最新国产中文字幕| 亚洲AV无码一区二区三区在线播放 | 午夜国产在线观看| 欧美性另类高清极品| 天美麻豆蜜桃91制片厂| 一级毛片国产**永久在线| 成人午夜小视频| 久久精品国产亚洲精品2020| 最近2019好看的中文字幕| 亚洲aⅴ男人的天堂在线观看| 欧美亚洲国产精品久久高清| 亚洲免费人成在线视频观看|