Many student-athletes saw their sporting dreams come true at the Chengdu FISU World University Games, which ended in the Sichuan provincial capital on Tuesday.
A spectacular stage for the athletes to perform to their best, the games marked not only career milestones for the competitors, but also bore testimony to the rapid growth of university sports development in China.
“We hope that through such a unique gathering, everyone can feel the vitality of China and the power that young people bring to the country”, Jia Ding, Chief Director of the Closing Ceremony, said.
From July 28th to August 8th, young athletes from all over the world gathered in Chengdu, telling the unique charm of sports with a competing attitude and high spirit, showcasing the unique style of the young generation.
On the first day of the competition, Cao Maoyuan won the first gold medal of the Chengdu Universiade with a set of flowing routines of Southern-style Kungfu.
“I believe that through the hosting of this Universiade, more people can see the strength of Sichuan martial arts and the strength of Chinese martial arts, making more people from different countries willing to learn about martial arts and love martial arts”, Cao Maoyuan, a player of the Chinese team, said.
On the evening of August 4th, Chinese athlete Wu Yanni won the silver medal in the women's 100m hurdles at the Universiade at 12.76 seconds, qualifying her for both the World Championships and the Paris Olympics.
“I am very happy to be able to compete in my hometown and win second place. Let’s meet at the Paris Olympics”, Wu Yanni, a player of the Chinese team, said.
The Chinese delegation won a total of 103 gold medals, 40 silver medals, and 35 bronze medals, ranking first on the medal charts.
34 college athletes from 9 universities in Jiangsu Province competed in 8 major events, with the number of participating universities ranking second in the country and the number of participating athletes ranking third in the country.
Half of Jiangsu's student-athletes come from comprehensive higher education institutions such as Nanjing University, Nanjing Normal University, Southeast University, Suzhou University, and Yangzhou University. They include Zhang Yufei, who broke records and won gold medals in the swimming pool, Wang Qi, who won gold in hammer throw, Li Yuting, Cai Yanting, and Sui Gaofei, who won two gold medals in the men's and women's 100m relay, and Wu Mengjie, who won the women's volleyball championship against Japan.
