A new swimming world record, a first singles tennis gold and a string of historic moments to remember — the Chinese delegation ended its Paris Olympic campaign on a high note with resounding success both on and off the field.
As the Olympic flame went out after an extraordinary show of human strength and endurance for two weeks, Team China's outstanding performance, highlighted by a record haul of 40 gold medals, the adorable nature of young athletes and their friendly exchanges with their foreign peers, was enshrined in the history of the Games in the French capital.
Bolstered by the whopping contribution of 27 gold medals from its six traditionally strong sports — diving, table tennis, badminton, gymnastics, shooting and weightlifting — the Chinese delegation finished with 40 gold medals and a total haul of 91 in Paris, surpassing its previous record at the London Games in 2012 to achieve the nation's best outcome in gold medal tally at any overseas edition of the Summer Olympics.
At Beijing 2008, it won 48 gold medals and 100 overall.
On Sunday, the United States edged past China to finish on top of the Paris Olympics chart with a total medal haul of 126, including 40 golds.
The first-ever clean sweep of all eight gold medals up for grabs in the Olympic diving discipline by China's "dream team" and the world-conquering Chinese table tennis squad's complete collection of all five titles have only cemented the nation's stranglehold on these sports.
More encouraging, a series of major breakthroughs — such as China's first tennis singles Olympic gold, won by women's ace Zheng Qinwen, swimming prodigy Pan Zhanle's world record-breaking win in the men's 100m freestyle and teen cyclist Deng Yawen's trailblazing golden finish in BMX freestyle park — have all heralded China's strong foray into Western-dominated sports with much balanced athletic prowess.
Zhou Jinqiang, vice-president of the Chinese delegation, said on Sunday at a news conference in Paris that the overall performance at the Games could be summed up with one word-"breakthrough".
"We reached new heights in terms of the total number of gold medals won (at an overseas edition) and the number of events that we first won medals in. We also proved that our athletic strength has been significantly expanded to more sports," said Zhou.
Zhou added that the Chinese delegation has successfully completed its mission and realized its goals.
Sun Yingsha, world No 1 in women's table tennis, said that China's overall prosperity and strength have served as a proud source of motivation for all her fellow Olympians.
"It's really an honor, and we all played confidently, knowing that a strong home country is supporting us," Sun said, after helping her squad beat Japan 3-0 in the women's team final on Saturday to secure China's 300th gold medal at the Summer Olympics since the Chinese delegation's debut at Los Angeles 1984.
By putting their colorful and vibrant images on full display at the pinnacle of their careers, China's modern-day Olympians have broken the stereotypes portrayed by Western media about their hard-working but sometimes reticent predecessors decades ago, representing a more open and confident generation of athletes who no longer hide their light under a bushel.
In addition, being able to speak directly to the international audiences in fluent English has certainly helped this generation more.
Chen Yiwen, who won two diving gold medals, in individual 3m springboard and the synchronized event with partner Chang Yani, has broken the language barrier and bonded closely with some of her formidable foreign rivals, while also exuding confidence during her international media interviews in English.
Chen's adorable selfies with teammate Chang and Australian rival Maddison Keeney, the silver medalist in 3m individual, have gone viral on social media platforms at home and abroad, earning thousands of likes for the "true embodiment of Olympic value".
Speaking about the friendship with her Chinese peers, Keeney said: "I feel like these girls, they're like my sisters. I'm just really lucky to be able to have a positive competitive relationship with them. No matter what happens on the board, it doesn't affect our relationships outside."
sunxiaochen@chinadaily.com.cn
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