“Let’s all cheer together, the champion of the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay is——”
“Team China!”
“They have won the third gold medal for China, and it is the first gold medal for the swimming team. Today is the first day of the swimming competition, so this is a great start!”
At the award ceremony, the two commentators from CCTV were shouting with excitement.
Chen Shu and the other three, under the gaze and cheers of all the spectators in the stadium, stood on the highest podium, their arms around each other’s shoulders.
“Oh, oh, oh, oh——”
Many spectators from China waved five-star red flags in the stands.
A sea of cheers and jubilant cries of “Awesome, China! Awesome, China!” could be heard.
The second-place Australian and American teams were rather unhappy with the current atmosphere. But as they were outmatched, the champion was China, and they could only swallow their discontent.
The officials of the French Swimming Center presented Chen Shu and the others with their gold medals.
Chen Shu lowered his head. A heavy gold medal rested on his chest. On the back of the medal was the Olympic logo. On the front was a piece of gold and iron, inlaid with a fragment of the Eiffel Tower, which looked a bit unique, but it was probably just to save money.
It was made of iron, and of course, the gold medal was not made of pure gold. It only contained 6 grams of gold, the rest was silver.
Besides the gold medal, there was also a rolled-up award certificate, which included proof of breaking the world record.
Chen Shu received an additional congratulatory letter for the world youth record.
Holding the gold medal in his hand, Chen Shu’s heart naturally swelled with excitement.
World champion, standing on the highest podium of competition, and he was only 13 years old, the future was wide open. The commentator from CCTV was also full of envy: "At 13 years old, I don't even know how many competitions await this young player, creating one record after another, belonging to him!”
“What a blessing, this is the future of China, the genius of the next decade. They are fearless, pressing forward, creating history for China, for Asia, for the world!”
“Let's remember these four young men, Pan Zhan Le, Chen Jun Er, Wang Hao Yu, and Chen Shu!”
“And the alternate player—Ji Xing Jie!”
“Congratulations to them!”
“Play the national anthem!”
Chen Shu and the others set down their certificates, each placed their hand on their chest, lifted their heads, and sang the “March of the Volunteers” with solemnity, following the music.
All the Chinese people in the stadium sang along, the whole scene was deeply moving.
You might never know how sacred and proud it is to stand on the highest podium unless you have experienced it firsthand.
Why are my eyes always filled with tears?
Because I love this land so deeply!
For the first time, Chen Shu truly understood the meaning of Ai Qing's poem.
Clap, clap, clap!
After the national anthem ended, thunderous applause and screams erupted from the audience. Chen Shu took a deep breath and finally felt the weight of the gold medal in his hand, how real it was.
Gold medal!
He had won an Olympic gold medal.
In his previous life, this was a honor he never dared to dream of. Now, after coming to this world for a few months, he had already achieved it.
And in the future, he would have more gold medals and records to win and break. Pan Zhan Le wanted to take a photo with the Australian and American teams, but he got a cold shoulder. They didn’t even look at him.
Caleb Dressel from the American team, the five-time gold medalist at the previous Olympics, was still muttering to himself in English.
Of course, he didn’t dare to say it out loud because if he got caught by the media, it would be a problem. But it certainly wasn't anything good. He was probably complaining about the pool being unclean and suspecting China of using performance-enhancing drugs. But in reality, it was probably them who were using drugs. Otherwise, why did everyone's face look like Thanos when they reached the finish line?
“They just can’t accept defeat!”
Pan Zhan Le grinned with a sense of satisfaction: “We are the champions now, they are the losers. They just can't accept this fact!”
“Yeah, they are triggered!”
“After all, we are the victors!”
“Right, so let's smile brighter!”
The four of them stood on the podium, letting the media and officials take photos.
Next, they would have to wear their medals and participate in the official interview, all four of them would have to be present.
Coach Cui Deng Rong, the team leader, Ji Xing Jie, and others would also be there.
“Brothers, pay attention, these foreigners won’t ask any good questions!”
Pan Zhan Le was reminding them. He was also a young player on the entire swimming team. However, Wang Hao Yu was even younger, one year younger than him. He was only 18 years old. Chen Jun Er was older than Pan Zhan Le, but not by much. They were the same age, only half a year apart.
In other words, their average age was only 18 years old, a group of incredibly young players.
Adding Chen Shu to the mix, it’s no wonder the foreigners couldn’t stand it.
Could you accept being insulted by a 13-year-old middle school student and three high school students?
China was happy, but the Western world was probably blasting Chen Shu and the others online.
After all, swimming has always been their strong point, and the relay event in particular reflects a country's strong swimming foundation. This makes it even more unbearable for them.
The four of them chatted and laughed as they walked to the backstage interview area.
Whoosh!
A sea of reporters, from all over the world, pointed their cameras and microphones at the press conference table. The journalists from France, Australia, America, and several other countries were at the front.
There were also many reporters from China, but they only had one spot, so several media outlets had to share it, making it rather crowded.
After the four of them and Cui Deng Rong took their seats, the moderator of the press conference began speaking in English.
Each media outlet only had 90 seconds and was limited to 20 countries for interviews.
Following China's wishes, the Chinese reporters would ask their questions first, and then it would be America's turn.
“Hello, Pan Zhan Le, during the award ceremony, were you talking to our team members?”
This was a reporter from ESPN, an American sports channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is incredibly influential not only in America but also in many other parts of the world. Therefore, the channel enjoys very high global recognition.
“No, I invited him for a photo, but he declined.”
“Of course, I understand his frustration after coming in second place. A little bit of emotion is normal!”
“Heh heh…”
Many of the reporters in the audience started laughing. Cui Deng Rong beside him was winking at him, but the kid was completely oblivious.
These 00s kids are really hard to manage…Cui Deng Rong could only let Pan Zhan Le go with the flow.
Sure enough, 19 years old is an age that cannot hide anything, no matter what questions the ESPN reporter asked, Pan Zhan Le’s answers were quite strong, either accusing or complaining. So, they had to turn their attention to Chen Shu, who seemed very young and harmless.
The 13-year-old player was obviously the easiest to deal with.
“Hello, I would like to ask the swimmer who took the first leg, what is his name?”
This was an Australian journalist. The American interview had already lasted 90 seconds, and they were watching the Australian reporter ask Chen Shu. They suddenly regretted asking. However, they could still intercept and record the other party’s interview content.
Therefore, they were all waiting for Chen Shu's answer.