BEIJING, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- He is nobody in the sport of canoe and kayak
slalom but he has made history for China at the Beijing Olympic Games.
His name is Feng Liming, a Sichuan Province native. The 22-year-old
finished his Olympic debut in men's C1 slalom semifinal with a result of 94.64
seconds here on Tuesday.
The result was far from good but an obvious stride for China as the sport
has only a history of nine years in China.
"I did a good job today. I have no regret. I am really honored to represent
my country to be here," he said.
Feng started paddling in April 2000 all by accident. His father knew a
coach Gui Chengzhong, who coached Olympic sailing silver medalist Yin Jian when
she was in the Sichuan Provincial team. The father wanted Feng to try sailing
but right at that time he was told there would be a brand new sport to be
initiated--canoe/kayak slalom.
Feng knew nothing about the sport but was associated with it out of
curiosity.
"I didn't know if I loved the sport or not. After days of practice on that,
I began to fancy the sport more and more," said Feng.
Feng showed a great talent only one year after he took the sport. He
attended the Ninth National Games, representing Sichuan Province and settling
for a seventh finish.
After the National Games, Feng was recruited into the national team and
continued with a surge in strength. In 2005, he became the first Chinese paddler
to enter the finals of a world cup in men's C1 Slalom.
When everything was going smooth with Feng, he suffered the biggest setback
in his lifetime.
"It was the Tenth National Games when I was in good form and had a clear
advantage over the rest," said Feng. "I thought I could easily win but it turned
out that I finished with a fourth place."
A setback was not a bad thing, at least for Feng.
"I learned to control myself, began to learn from others and became more
and more mentally mature," he added.
Drawing from past experiences, Feng was closer to his dream.
"I have played to my best. Next time, I hope to enter the
final."
