This is the first month of the new millennium. I have dedicated this section to Li Xiao Peng and Liu Xuan. Li Xiao Peng is considered the new leader of the Chinese men by many coaches. He is a consistent gymnast (although he was not as consistent as he wanted to be in Tianjin), so is Liu Xuan. Liu Xuan is the most dedicated Chinese gymnast, ever, IMHO. She has achieved something that no other Chinese girls have achieved: remaining at peak level in gymnastics at the age of 21. She may also be the first Chinese woman to perform in the second Olympics in her gymnastics career.

LI Xiao Peng

Profile

Name: "li" means plum, it is the second most populated family name in Chinese; "xiao" means little or small; "peng" means roc, an animal that flies far and high and represents success in Chinese

Birthday: July 27, 1981

Blood type/height/weight: AB/160cm/52kg

Team: Hunan

Coach: Bai Yuan Shao

Strong events: parallel bars, floor, vault

Weak event: pommel horse (he has a wicked wrist due to injury)

Favourite food: chocolate

Favourite colors: white, blue

Favourite animal: turtle

Hobbies: video games, reading, snooker

Wish: to be an Olympic champion

Major results

1^st PB in 2001 9^th National Games

1^st team, 1^st PB in 2000 Olympic Games

1^st team, 1^st VT, 6^th PB in 1999 World Championships

1^st team in 1998 Asian Games

1^st PB, 1^st VT in 1998 1^st Nationals; 1^st FX, 1^st PB in 1998 2^nd Nationals

1^st FX, 1^st PB in 1998 World Cup final

1^st team, 2^nd PB, 3^rd FX in 1997 World Championships

Trivia

--When Li was still in his province, he was a naughty member. It was a rule that no gymnasts can leave the camp without permission from the coaches. Once he wanted to have a break and left the team one night to have some fun outdoor. His outrageous escape was caught the next day. No surprise he was put on detention afterwards.

--Li Xiao Peng started gymnastics at 6 and joined the National team at 15.

--As a joke asked by a journalist if Li Xiao Peng makes more money than his parents, he agreed with the guess.

LIU Xuan

Profile

Name: "liu" is a common family name in Chinese; "xuan" is a kind of jade

Birthday: March 12, 1979

Blood type/height/weight: A/156cm/52kg

Team: Hunan

Coaches: Lu Shan Zhen, Liu Qun Lin

Signature Skills: Liu -- one-arm back giant (B!), one-arm giant followed by Jaeger (C!); floaty two-foot layout (D), ring leap (C), one of the best Yang Bo leap (D) on beam

Strong events: balance beam, uneven bars

Weak event: vault

Favourite food: fruits, sweet and spicy food

Favourite colors: all that are pretty

Favourite music: pop

Favourite animal: dog

Idol: Liu Xuan

Hobbies: reading, music, collecting perfumes, chatting

Unhappy experience: 1996 Olympic Games

Wish: realizing all wishes

Nicknames: journalists call her "Xiang Mei Zi" (meaning the Hunan girl); younger teammates call her "Xuan Jie"

Current status: studying journalism at the Beijing University

Major results

3^rd team, 3^rd "AA", 1^st BB in 2000 Olympic Games

3^rd team, 5^th AA in team finals in 1999 World Championships

7^th AA, 1^st BB in 1999 Trophee Massilia

3^rd UB in 1999 first Nationals, 1^st AA, 2^nd UB, 3^rd BB in 1999 second Nationals

3^rd team, 3^rd AA in 1999 University Games

1^st team, 1^st AA, 1^st BB in 1998 Asian Games

1^st BB, 3^rd UB in 1998 World Cup

1^st AA in 1998 Nationals

3^rd team, 7^th AA in 1997 World Championships

4^th team in 1996 Olympic Games

3^rd BB, 9^th UB (!) in 1996 World Championships

2^nd team in 1995 World Championships

1^st team, 2^nd UB in 1994 Asian Games

Trivia

--Liu Xuan collects perfume, makes handcrafts, and likes to take pictures

--Liu Xuan started gymnastics at 5 and joined the National team at 13.

--Liu Xuan was elected as one of "Ten Best Athletes" in China for the year 1998.

Articles about Liu Xuan

Dec. 10, 1998

Will We See Liu Xuan again at the Olympics?

After the Asian Games, Liu Xuan clearly stated that she wants to compete at the 2000 Olympics. She used the words "want it very much" to express her eagerness about the Olympics, and she was confident about her shape in the age of 21 at that time.

One coach Huang Yu Bin didn't deny the fact that Liu Xuan's age is a bit too old for elite gymnastics. But he didn't conclude that Liu Xuan couldn't go to the 2000 Olympics, he said: "If she could maintain the level, she could. And if she could control her weight, there would be no problem." Obviously he has left some room for this topic. Another coach Gao Jian was even more specific: "Before there were compulsory exercises. Now there are no compulsory exercises for Liu Xuan. She can reuse her own skills. If there are compulsory exercises, Liu Xuan would be easily eliminated through competition. Now a female gymnast can have a longer career. Liu Xuan's chance to appear at the 2000 Olympics depends on her condition and other gymnasts' condition in the future. If the younger gymnasts excel her, then of course she won't be selected. Personally I hope that some other gymnasts will be better than Liu Xuan, although she's still the best now. If at the 2000 Olympics, Liu Xuan would be the third or the fourth ranked member on the team, that would be the ideal situation. Being the oldest member, her presence will be very important to the team. If Liu Xuan is always the best, it would be good for her personally, but it wouldn't be a good phenomenon to the team, we then have to re-examine our system of training new gymnasts."

Liu Xuan's coach Lu Shan Zhen said, the difficulty for her to compete at the Olympics exists. It really depends on other gymnasts.

(end)

(Glad to see Liu Xuan competed again in the 1999 World Championships!)

Jan. 29, 1999

Gymnastics Is My Favourite

For many times facing with the audience and the camera, Liu Xuan always shows us her beautiful smile, but this time, tears appeared at her eyes, she couldn't say any words for awhile. (This interview was taken when Liu Xuan got her picture posted at the Wall of Gymnastics World Champions in China.)

Liu Xuan: "Being able to stand here finally, there're too many feelings, sadness, pain, and happiness fill my heart. Five years ago, I was like these little gymnasts, sitting down there, I was very envious about those big brothers and sisters who were standing here (the podium for gymnastics World and Olympic champions). I was wondering when I could stand here. I've been longing to fulfill this wish, but five years of a bumpy road, I was always fractions of an inch away from a World Champion title. I'm aged, and my body isn't as good as before anymore. Especially in 1996, my performance wasn't very good, and my level was low compared to the team. When I was considering retirement, my coach sincerely encouraged me to stay. Now I got what I have."

Q: "Now your team is advocating 'Liu Xuan Spirit', do you feel any pressure?"

A: "I don't have any pressure. I have experienced many ups and downs, I'm more matured now. Before I always gave myself too much pressure, I was afraid that I couldn't compete well, and I was always disappointed. Now I believe that you get paid off for what you have given. There is a long road for the Chinese women's team. Being the captain and the oldest member, I have to be a model for other members. I require myself to be consistent. Every time I treat myself as a new gymnast in a competition, because only if I perform well, other teammates could gain the confidence, then we could fulfill our dream to be the World Champion team."

Q: "You're the oldest gymnast of all the girls in your team. Have you thought about the future?"

A: "I will strive until the Olympics. Gymnastics is my favourite."

Many journalists sincerely praise this Xiang Mei Zi (Xiang is the abbreviation for the Hu Nan province where Liu came from) that she's "becoming more and more beautiful." But Liu Xuan at her blooming age sacrificed a lot more compared to ordinary girls. Her hands are full of callus, her body has countless injuries, but she never regrets what she did.

(end)

April 9, 1999

The Fashion Magazine

Get Closer to Liu Xuan

Girls like to adorn themselves. Liu Xuan is no exception. Besides training, she goes shopping and she reads "Fashion". "I prefer single color clothes, especially black and white. White clothes make you look innocent, and black clothes make your look more matured." She doesn't care much about brand, her opinion is "we rarely go out, we mainly stay in the training center. Everyone wears sports dress. It looks weird if you're the only one wearing fashion clothes... Fashion clothes are too expensive. We don't have much money. A fashion cloth can to range from thousands to ten thousands dollars, it's not economical for us to wear one? There are too few fashion clothes suitable for us. We are athletes, we like to wear loose dress. But the trends are long and skinny. They look good on models. They might not look good on us."

Then what does she do? "We go to markets!" She said, there's a quite good market near the training center. Not only the goods have good prices there, you can also bargain. Gymnastic stars buy clothes and bargain at markets?

"Really!" She laughed, "But I'm not very good at bargaining, my teammate Ji Li Ya is terrific. Clothes for a few hundred dollars, she can buy them at half price. It doesn't look any worse than those brand-name dresses on us!"

Like Yanni's music

Actually Liu Xuan rarely goes shopping. When she's tired, she reads books and listens to music. "It's a really good feeling." On her desk, there's a book called "Emotional Quotient". "I got this when I bought 'Fashions' last time. This book says people with good IQ don't necessarily succeed, you also need good mental strength." She said she likes to read similar books, but it's hard to find them.

"Would you recommend a few books to me?" Looking at her eyes, I feel touching. I can't stop a learning heart.

Other than reading, Liu Xuan also likes music, especially Yanni's music. It's that profound and secluded.

"I'm using Yanni's music for my floor exercise. My choreography teacher chose it for me. I used to have lively music, but it's a sad one now. I told my choreography teacher, it's already very tired for me after a whole day's training, and you still want to make me feel sad, I would feel exhausted! (laughed) My teacher said I'm grown up, I should switch my style, and choose a piece of music with deep emotion. 'Like a ballet dancer, bring your judges to an enjoyable and meaning atmosphere.' But I always laugh when I do my floor exercise, the outcome isn't very good. Seems like it's hard to change your style when you get used to it."

The Whole Family Are Gymnastics Fans

When Liu Xuan cleanly finished her best event balance beam at the Asian Games, there was loud applause from the audience. But before the judges raised the score, "My dad sitting before TV was yelling: 'There was a step at the landing, 0.1 deduction!' He was even harsher than the judges!" Liu Xuan laughs and says: "I'm at this level now, my dad feels embarrassed to give me suggestions. Before I joined the national team, my dad was like half of my coach. He didn't understand too much about gymnastics. But since he took me to the training most of the time, he watched a lot and he understood more." She got good teachers at school and her father "tutored" her at home, no wonder she improved faster than other kids.

Liu Xuan proudly told me: "My whole family are gymnastics fans. My mother used to have gymnastics training. My grandmother is already in the 80's, but every time she knows there's gymnastics competitions, she would be the first one running to the TV, moving faster than anyone else." Although her grandmother doesn't recognize the skills, and doesn't understand exactly of when to take deductions, but she could recognize her little treasured granddaughter. "I was brought up by my grandmother. I was always sick as a little child. I rarely went outdoors. To make me feel happy, my grandmother always told me stories. When the stories were done, we played cards. It was very fun. But after I started gymnastics, I seldom stay with her. I really want to spend more time with my grandmother!" She shook her head with pity.

What Bothers Her the Most Is Weight

Many gymnastics fans wrote to Liu Xuan: "You always smile during competitions, you must be an optimistic person. Do you have worries?" Yes, doesn't she have worries? "Why not? Like my weight!" She was laughing when she said that.

In her age of fourteen and fifteen, her face got chubby first, and her coach always said: "You've gained weight again. Look at you, how chubby you are!" "I said no. But When I looked in the mirror, my face was in fact chubbier. I didn't have experience to reduce weight. I stopped eating rice when I gained weight, but I got heavier! I didn't reduce snacks!"

"After the Asian Games, I went back to the provincial team. The head of the provincial team asked me when he first saw me: 'You haven't gained weight, have you?' I said no. I was wearing casual dress and high heel shoes to look taller. He looked at me for almost half a day and said: 'Mnn, really, it looks lighter.' See, my weight even becomes a popular topic of my provincial team! Sometimes I feel that gymnastics is cruel, especially to people like me who gains weight easily. We used to have a teammate, she ate a lot of rice and snacks, but she never gained weight. We were very jealous! Although we feel envious, but we teased her 'You waste food, we don't!' " (laughed)

No Prince Yet, Honest

Liu Xuan is nineteen now. Doesn't she have a crash? Who would be that lucky prince? Before I finished my question, her face turned red immediately: "No, no, there's none!" She said, she's almost twenty, but she doesn't quite understand relationships. She has got a lot more to learn, and she's going to prepare for the Olympics. She doesn't want to diverge her focus.

"Maybe I am affected by my family, I prefer to be more realistic, even for relationships. I feel envious about my parents. My father is lively, humorous; my mother is gentle, quiet and exquisite. I rarely find them arguing on something. They match so well to each other. I feel they have a happy life."

Liu Xuan said: "Many people have asked me what kind of a guy I look for in the future, I haven't thought about it seriously. Consciously I feel that he should be like my father, with good personality, a lively person. Maybe I'm a plain person, I don't look for it on purpose, let it be what it will be. I'm still young, who knows what it will be like in the future?"

Now, Liu Xuan's eyes show great expectation...

(end)

August 30, 1999

Sports Weekly

The Team Captain, Liu Xuan, Aims at the Sydney Olympics

There were cheers. The beautiful Liu Xuan again immersed in the happiness of becoming the AA champion. Aside from the long applause, the 20 years old Liu Xuan showed her expectation to the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

"Let's watch the Tianjin World!" the emotional Liu Xuan said. On August 28th, the team captain captured the national AA gold medal with a big lead. She is not subjugated to "old age" and injuries. She showed strong confidence. Liu Xuan said, she has injuries, but those are old injuries. If the weather is not humid, it doesn't affect her much. She considers herself in much better shape than the first half in 1999. She's confident to help the team get a good result in the Tianjin World Championship.

Liu Xuan's coach, the main coach of the national women's team, Liu Qun Lin, ran to Liu Xuan and Hugged with her emotionally after Liu won the AA competition. "Not easy." She said, "Liu Xuan gets the good results after she has overcome her age difficulties and her many injuries. It's really not easy for her." Liu Qun Lin thinks, it's essential for Liu Xuan to compete well to get a place on the Olympics team. Liu Xuan has been a World champion, if she still keeps her hard work and confidence, she can shine again at the Olympics.

Watching Liu Xuan surrounded by the enthusiastic crowd, we all hope that this Xiang Mei Zi will compete to 2000 and bring more victories and happiness to us. Due to her age, she has more injuries than her younger teammates, and she also has to control her weight. She has paid a lot of prices that people rarely know.

When the team leader Zhang Jian commented about the women's competitions, he said: "Liu Xuan had the best performance. She is an old member on the team. She has great techniques and she competes consistently. She should become the team leader in Tianjin."

(end>