Coach Gu speaks out

The Forums Beijing 2008 Coverage
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INTERESTING SIGN OF THE TIME. LIU’S COACH BLAMES CHINESE “SYSTEM” FOR RUINING XIANG’S TITLE DEFENCE. HE MAY SOON FIND HE’S LIVING IN “INTERESTING TIMES” …

After the protege he discovered 16 years ago limped off the track at Beijing’s Bird’s Nest stadium, Gu Baogang hit out at China’s treatment of its sportsmen and women, insisting Liu could have been fit to claim his second successive gold in the 110 metres hurdles.

Instead, the athlete pulled up in agony as his heat got off to a false start and felt unable to retake his place in the blocks. The Athens gold medalist was shown by television cameras crouching by an outside wall in bitter disbelief as officials, volunteers and the entire country watched on in horror.

[b]“I am saddened by Liu Xiang’s exit,” Mr Gu said at his office in Shanghai. "I think it is because of the intense training. If he had been more relaxed the injury might not have been so bad.

“I have experienced in the past the great pressure that government officials exert on the athletes as well as the coach, and that they demand a gold medal, otherwise it is meaningless. Liu Xiang is still a young boy and he has been put under a bit too much expectation.”[/b]

Liu, 25, the son of a Shanghai truck driver, was a bright schoolboy until he was picked out at the age of nine as a potential athlete by Mr Gu, his school coach, initially as a high jumper.

He later turned to hurdles, and was taken under the wing of his current coach, Sun Haiping, who turned him into a world star with his gold medal in Athens in 2004 and a world record in 2006.

This year he has clearly been in difficulties with an injured hamstring and an achilles tendon problem, missing a number of events on the European circuit. Still, the fact that China’s favourite poster boy - his face appears on advertisements for Nike and Visa all over the country - was still not fully fit came as a huge surprise when Mr Sun released the news on Sunday evening.

Some fans are already asking whether the pressure on Liu from the extraordinary hype that has surrounded him in the run-up to the Games was too great. Questions will now be asked about whether he was properly prepared in the last six months for what everyone knew was the most important race of his life.

[b]Mr Gu said his longstanding hamstring injury was not too serious, and that the real problems had begun in a trial at the national stadium in June.

“He never had any injuries before he hurt his foot in June,” Mr Gu said. “But that injury was not too bad. After the Bird’s Nest was finished, he trained in the stadium in July and hurt his foot again.”[/b]

The training, combined with the huge pressure of delivering in front of his home audience, was a great burden.

“When you are faced with great pressure and intensive training, all kinds of problems can arise,” he said. “And if you are under great pressure before a big race, it is difficult to get over your injuries quickly.”

He said Liu’s superstar status made it hard for him to step outside.

“Liu Xiang has no freedom in China,” he said. "He is respected and loved, but he leads a really boring life and cannot go out much.

"He feels more relaxed when he races outside China. It would be better if he was in an environment that is more like a foreign country, with less attention.

“He is the only competitive athlete in China’s track and field team so he has been under constant pressure, including from the high hopes of government officials.”

[b]He was now worried about the response from Communist Party officials, sports administrators and sponsors.

“My worry is that government officials might complain about Liu Xiang’s exit and harbour some negative feelings towards him,” he said.[/b]

"The government and the sports administration have to understand and be lenient, because he has achieved so much.

“If they want him to come back to racing, they need to work out a way to encourage him and console him. They cannot push him into a corner, since no one can win all of the time. Injuries are unavoidable.”

In fact, the national mood in the wake of the disaster has been one of sympathy. After the gasp of shock as Liu walked away, thousands of spectators for whom his appearance was the main draw of the day poured out of the stadium, telling reporters that they thought he had tried his hardest.

“I think he did his best - his injury must have been quite serious,” said one man.

At his old school, Yichuan Middle, Yao Wei, 17, said: “I feel disappointed, but it is not his fault or the coach’s. I think this has a lot to do with being at home in China and the pressure.”

Interviewed on China Central Television, Chen Zhao, sports editor of the international edition of People’s Daily, the Communist Party newspaper, said that the generous response of the crowd to Liu’s demise might prove the day’s silver lining.

“Those young people were all very understanding,” he said. “This is much more valuable than a single gold medal in the hurdles. It’s something to treasure that we can show a tolerant attitude in sport.”

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By Jack Chang
McClatchy Newspapers
(MCT)
BEIJING - The accusations started flying as soon as star Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang limped off the track of the National Stadium here Monday and dropped out of the Olympic Games.
Many Chinese had considered Liu the photogenic poster boy of what’s so far been a stellar Summer Games for Chinese athletes. Hundreds of millions were watching on television shortly before noon Monday as the 25-year-old, 2004 Olympic gold medal winner took the track for the first time during the current games to the roar of tens of thousands of fans.
Those hopes crashed just seconds after the starting gun fired for a qualifying race in Liu’s signature event, the 110-meter hurdles. Liu barely got off a few feeble steps, and it was over.
While the rest of the hurdlers returned to their starting blocks after a false start, Liu left the track without acknowledging the legions of shocked fans still waiting for him to dominate. A Chinese television news reporter covering the event wept on camera.
Just minutes later, this 1.3 billion-person country’s adrenalized blogosphere was afire. As the first Chinese winner of a men’s track and field gold medal and a former world record holder, both in the 110-meter hurdles, Liu is nothing less than a rock star to legions of young Chinese.
Yet many Chinese bloggers turned on Liu after the race, accusing him of faking what his coaches said was an inflamed right Achilles’ heel and shirking from the morning’s epic test. Chinese censors stepped into action in the afternoon to erase the barrage of negative Web postings.
His absence from track meets since May, apparently due to a right hamstring injury, helped feed rumors that Liu was hiding from competition.
I feel pain not because of his exit but because of his quitting ways,'' wrote senior soccer reporter Dong Lu in his blog. I think he should have at least waved goodbye to the 90,000-person audience in the stadium. If it was me, I would prefer to walk the 110 meters until the end.’’
Another blogger named Dream-pursuing girl wrote, I think Liu Xiang isn't confident. He thought he wouldn't win the race, he was afraid, then used the excuse of a foot injury to withdraw from the competition. It is really a disappointing thing. He has disappointed all the Chinese.'' In a mournful press conference after the race, the Chinese athletic team's head coach, Feng Shuyong, partly blamed such scrutiny for the hurdler's misfortunes, saying Liu was under intense public pressure especially during these Olympics. Advertising billboards featuring the hurdler's face fill Beijing. Feng said Liu would likely not compete until next year because of his injuries. U.S. hurdler Terrence Trammell, who finished just behind Liu in the 110-meter hurdles in the 2004 Summer Games, also dropped out of the same event Monday due to a leg injury. That leaves Cuban hurdler, Dayron Robles, who broke Liu's world record in June, as the favorite in the event. Although Liu doesn’t go out often, whenever he does he sees his own picture in the streets, and then whenever he surfs the Internet he sees all kinds of information about him,’’ Feng said. Liu Xiang is a great athlete. He withstands the kind of pressure that no other athlete could withstand.'' Liu's personal coach Sun Haiping wept during the news conference while describing his attempts to keep Liu in the race, which had included icing the hurdler's right foot and spraying it with an anti-inflammatory coolant. Liu did not speak Monday. Such explanations, however, didn't quiet speculation Monday, even from other athletes. Some wondered, for example, why Liu had grimaced and rubbed his right hamstring Monday morning when his coaches said the problem was his heel. Liu Xiang is obviously very sad, and I can understand his pain,’’
said Ethiopian runner Haile Gebrselassie. It is painful for him, but the pain is not in his leg. Where is the pain? It is up here,’’ the Ethiopian answered, pointing to his head.
Chinese fans walking out of the National Stadium Monday said they were saddened by Liu’s departure but were willing to give the hurdler the benefit of the doubt. Even without Liu, Chinese athletes have built a commanding lead in the Olympics gold medal race.
I think there was too much pressure on him,'' said Steve Zhong, who had traveled from southern China to catch that morning's track meet. Everyone in China was watching him.’’

Liu became a superstar after winning the 2004 gold medal, which ended a long string of mediocre Chinese track and field performances.
With his good lucks and friendly demeanor, the hurdler went on to become a Michael Jordan and Michael Jackson combined'' for many Chinese, regularly appearing on magazine covers and television commercials, said Xu Guoqui, a U.S.-based chronicler of the Chinese sports program. Liu has also won international fame, with Newsweek magazine featuring him on the cover of its Aug. 4, 2008, edition under the headline What Drives China.’’
Yet all that build-up and advertising pizzazz went up in smoke in a matter of seconds.
More than 1.3 billion people had their hopes on him,'' Xu said. He was the biggest star of the Olympics, and now he’s gone.’’

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Two conflicting articles. The first says that the young Chinese population is very supportive and understanding. The second says Chinese bloggers call him a quitter but their posts are deleted by the govt. I take back my earlier comment about him having potentially the best support system ever. Looks like he is just part of the machine not unlike a 5 year old gymnast taken from her family to train against her will.

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Liu’s coach

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Sometimes it is best to look at the history of olympic champions that succeeded at home. Cathy Freeman left Australia for most of the year during the Sydney Olympics. While Micheal Johnson…is an asshole…his resolve insulated him from the pressure. In a way he is smart?

Liu should have trained somewhere outside China…it very difficult to think clearly when you are in your own country and are hosting a major meet.

Like Charlie says “less is more” imagine a 1% increase in training volume when your country is hosting the meet…it seems counter-intuitive but just the intensity in each of your workouts increases subconciously…suggests one should reduce the volume…that’s a hard thing to do???

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I’m interested in the commentators (mostly on electronic media) calling Liu a choker. He didn’t do a Marie-Jo Perec and cut and run from the Olympic showdown with no excuse.

Both Perec and Liu had already won Olympic and World gold medals. But in this instance it’s clear Liu has been unable to overcome a real injury. I feel very sad for him and his fans in China.

There are “rednecks” in every country, but it seems most of the Chinese are sensible and compassionate toward Liu’s dilemma. He was obviously ratshit before he even turned up on the main track.

It was excruciating though, watching the guy basically walk out in front of a firing squad.

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I really feel for Liu. His govt. thought, in some way, that stating that ‘if he failed in Beijing his previous accomplishments would mean nothing’(or something to that effect) would somehow motivate a clearly injured athlete and his coach?

Was that statement made to somehow motivate him into being, suddenly, healthy?

I cannot imagine the amount of pressure he and his coach have been under.

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Wasn’t there a quote somewhere that Liu’s camp didn’t feel pressure because 60% of Chinese surveyed said they would not think badly of him if he lost? Wow…60%.

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I think it was unfortunate that Gu commented because it can only make things worse. The general public cannot understand the subleties of training (hell. We have people like that on here). When you blame the government, they’ll push back. Whenever you read a blog in China, with all their control, how do you know it’s a person and not the official line, designed to smash him down?

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That’s what emotions do to you! Nice to see the Chinese as real people rather than the robots we often think of them as.

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AGREED. They are really loosening up around all the other madness in the grandstands :stuck_out_tongue:

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BEIJING, Aug 19, 2008 (AFP) - China’s leadership and the media rallied around fallen idol Liu Xiang on Tuesday, a day after the injured 110m hurdles champion limped out of the Beijing Olympics.
Vice President Xi Jinping, in a message published in the official Chinese and English-language media, wished him a speedy recovery and told him and his coach, Sun Haiping, not to lose heart.
We hope that he will take proper rest and focus on his recovery,' said Xi, who is tipped to take over from President Hu Jintao as China's top leader in about five years. We hope that after he recovers he will continue to train hard and struggle harder for national glory.’’
Liu, the 25-year-old world and Olympic champion in the 110m hurdles, pulled out of his first heat at the Olympics on Monday citing a long-standing tendon injury in his right foot.
In a show of solidarity with the sporting icon, the media appealed to Liu’s millions of fans to show understanding.
Liu Xiang is a sporting idol whose importance for China goes beyond sport... for him to decide to pull out required a great deal of courage,'' said the Beijing News, a popular tabloid. For us spectators, if we respect the human spirit, then we absolutely must understand Liu Xiang’s decision.’’
The widely read Titan sports newspaper said the anguish of the Chinese people following the withdrawal of their biggest track star was understandable, but it should not be exaggerated.
China are dominating the medal table in their best-ever Olympic showing, and are set to take over from the United States as the world’s strongest sporting nation.
The Olympics won't be any less memorable or any less significant because Liu Xiang did not compete,'' Titan said. In a commentary, Titan insisted the loss of Liu Xiang was not a national disaster. This is not a tragedy as some people have put it. Liu Xiang was our hero. He still is,’’ it said.
The China Youth Daily pointed out that Liu Xiang’s decision to pull out was a tough call.
``Liu Xiang had no choice and this was a moment of great courage,’’ it said.

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Well bloody good on them!!