[Short track speed skating] From academic master to Winter Olympic champion

After all, this is the semi-finals, and there is also Ren Yongjie in the same group, so Gu Ran naturally dare not take it lightly during the competition.

He was in the leading position at the beginning of the race. He thought that Ren Yongjie behind him would chase him hard, so he kept skating at a relatively fast speed from the beginning.

Xu Qing said that he needs to feel his own technical characteristics during the game, seize the opportunity, collect information on the opponents before and after, and at the same time control the rhythm of the entire game.

After one lap, Gu Ran did not feel the tremendous pressure from the opponent behind him.He even felt that everything behind him was peaceful, unusually peaceful.

Although Gu Ran felt something was wrong, he didn't think about it - he was in the game now, and he had to put all his attention on himself first.

In this semi-final, he skated very smoothly, achieved a good result without much effort, and was the first to cross the finish line.

When to start the speed, when to stabilize the rhythm, how to deal with each corner, what is the route of the whole game... He perfectly presented the tactics specified before the game, with almost no deviation.

When slowing down and gliding, Gu Ran even had a smile on his face. He was very satisfied with his performance today, not because of his grades, but because of the satisfaction of controlling the overall situation.

The referee sounded the whistle to remind the athletes to leave the field. Gu Ran came to the sidelines, put on the skates, and waited for the results.

Ren Yongjie walked past him, and nodded at him with a smile: "Every time I see you, you make progress visible to the naked eye."

Gu Ran smiled and said, "Thank you!"

Ren Yongjie patted No. 41 next to him on the shoulder: "Learn from others. I will be 16 soon, and I don't know what I am doing all day long."

No. 41 glanced at Gu Ran with a complicated expression, and reluctantly responded: "Got it."

When several people walked out of the ice rink, the results came out.

As expected, Gu Ran advanced to the final with the first place in the group.

However, the second place in the group was not Ren Yongjie, but the number 41!

Seeing this result, Gu Ran immediately understood that the reason why he didn't feel a strong sense of oppression in the game was because Ren Yongjie didn't want to compete with him for second place in the group.

Seeing the replay of the moment when he crossed the line, Gu Ran realized that he slowed down a little in the end and fell to the third place, allowing his junior, that is, No. 41, to enter the final.

He was originally an official member of the National Youth Team and could directly participate in the National Championships. He didn't need to occupy the top 24 places in the total points ranking at all. That's why he let his teammates rank higher and get more points.

This must be a tactic temporarily arranged by the coach. The elite league has entered the third round, and every team is racking their brains to get more points and places.

Gu Ran looked at the big screen and fell into deep thought. He felt that he might not have fully understood Xu Qing's meaning.

Xu Qing said that he should not pay too much attention to the results, but to focus on the game itself.Are you implying that if you have enough points, give up the opportunity to help your teammates get more points.

While thinking about this question, Gu Ran walked towards the coach command area.Xu Qing saw him from a long distance, beckoned, and Gu Ran walked over.

Gu Ran opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but didn't say anything.On the contrary, Xu Qing opened his mouth first: "You performed well, this game has a bit of meaning."

Gu Ran said absently, "Because there is no pressure."

"When you are under pressure, try to be yourself as much as possible."

Gu Ran nodded and said nothing.

Next, the second group of games is about to start.Xu Qing put his arms around his shoulders and asked, "Is it cold?"

Director Wang who was standing on the other side immediately took Gu Ran's down jacket and put it on him: "Put it on quickly! Keep warm."

The second group of contestants has entered the arena. There are five people in this group, including Liu Fei and Chi Lang, both from H province, Meng Yuqiao, Zheng Wenkang, and a contestant from R province.

Five into two, this semi-final is probably even more exciting than the final.

Sure enough, at the beginning of the game, except for Liu Fei, all four were fighting for positions.Gu Ran could tell that Meng Yuqiao didn't just hate He Yang, he hated everyone in Province R, even this team.

As long as there are people from Province R in the same group, he will skate extraordinarily hard and grab the first position when he comes up.

Followed by Chi Lang, this kid has indeed improved a lot after a month of hard training. The key is that there is a senior brother behind him to escort him on the road to promotion-Liu Fei is stuck in the third place, Zheng Wenkang and that If the R provincial team members want to overtake him, it will be harder than reaching the sky.

This time, Zheng Wenkang worked very hard and was always looking for opportunities, but there was indeed a gap in level between him and Liu Fei. Every intention of his seemed to be within the other party's expectations. resolve.

In the end, Meng Yuqiao and Chi Lang entered the final.

Seeing her senior brother being eliminated, Gu Ran's heart was even heavier.On the contrary, Zheng Wenkang, who came out after the game, seemed to have a sense of relief.

He took off his helmet, walked to the front of the coach's bench, and said to Xu Qing with a smile on his face, "Director Xu, I really tried my best this time, and you can see it in the end."

Xu Qing nodded, didn't say anything, but told him to change clothes quickly.

Back at the hotel in the evening, after dinner, we held a meeting in Xu Qing's room as usual.The main thing is to talk about the finals on the second day, not much else.

Xu Qing said: "In the third round, I know that everyone is a little tired. Don't worry too much if the results are not good. If you reach the semi-finals, you can reach the points."

He is really good at controlling the mentality of the players. When everyone feels that the results are good, but when they are a little bit flustered, he starts to train people and create crises.

When everyone is a little frustrated because of unsatisfactory results, he will stand up and encourage the players so that the players don't have to worry.

"Okay, if you have any questions, ask them now."

The team members shook their heads one after another: "No more."

Xu Qing closed the order book: "Then go back and have an early rest."

Everyone left in twos and threes, Gao Ziyi and Gu Ran were standing at the door, so they pulled Gu Ran back: "Let's go."

Gu Ran stood there without moving: "Brother, go back first, I have something to tell Director Xu."

Gao Ziyi left without thinking too much.

After everyone left one after another, and only the two of them were left in the room, Xu Qing tapped the seat opposite him with his chin: "Come and sit."

After sitting down, Gu Ran considered for a moment before speaking: "Director Xu, I have a question."

Xu Qing talked a little too much just now, and said, "Ask."

"Before, you told me not to care about the grades. Did you also remind me that if you are in the same group as your teammates, you should give up the chance to advance."

Xu Qing was taken aback: "Why do you ask that?"

"No," Gu Ran smiled, "I just saw that Liu Fei and Ren Yongjie didn't make it to the finals today, so I thought, if I were in the same group as Senior Brother Zheng, would I..."

Xu Qing interrupted him: "Should we let him enter the final?"

Gu Ran nodded.

Xu Qing snorted and said, "Zheng Wenkang, if he has been reduced to the point where he needs you, a junior, to give up his qualifications for the finals, then he doesn't need to practice anymore, and he should retire as soon as possible."

"..."

Gu Ran didn't expect Xu Qing to say that, so he changed the question again: "What if it's someone else? This way our team can get one more qualification for the national championship. Isn't it the same for other teams?"

Xu Qing nodded: "That's right. One more qualification is one more opportunity. For the head coach, it will also be one more performance, and one more bonus at the end of the year."

Speaking of this, Xu Qing showed a smile again: "But I have a different idea from their old guides. If you can't do it, you can't even make it to the semi-finals. When it comes to the national championship, one more qualification is to give them points. Mother, what's the point?"

"Besides, if you want to advance to a higher-level event, you should work hard on your own, rather than relying on your teammates."

Gu Ran asked again: "So, don't you want an extra bonus?"

"Think about it, why don't you want to?" Xu Qingqing took it for granted, "So you give me a good game, how much honor you can get is directly related to how much bonus I can get, you know?"

Gu Ran couldn't help but rolled her eyes: "Director Xu."

"Ok?"

"Is it really okay for you to exploit your team members like this?"

"What's wrong?" Xu Qingqing spread his hands as a matter of course: "This is not called exploitation, it's called incentives, and it's a win-win situation for us."

Gu Ran scolded him in a low voice: "Smelly shameless."

Xu Qing smiled: "Speak up, I can't hear you."

Gu Ran pursed her lips and smiled obediently at him: "You are really a respected and good teacher."

Xu Qing nodded in satisfaction: "Okay, step back."

Gu Ran stood up and left. Before she could walk out the door, Xu Qing stopped her again: "Wait a minute."

Gu Ran turned her head: "Do you have any orders?"

"What I said just now applies only to insignificant competitions like the elite leagues. Not other competitions, especially international competitions. Everything you do has to be national honor, remember?"

He said it very solemnly, especially the words "national honor", which he emphasized, which contained a lot of deep meaning.

Therefore, Gu Ran also nodded solemnly: "Remember!"

"Just keep it in your heart, you don't need to think so far now."

"..."

By convention, all finals are played on the third matchday.In the men's and women's 2000-meter mixed relay, Gu Ran and his teammates won No.2.

In the individual 1000m final, Gu Ran came second again.

Not surprisingly, he will also take second place in the final men's 5000-meter relay final.

In order to avoid finishing second in all four finals, Gu Ran focused on the 500-meter final.

Neither Liu Fei nor Ren Yongjie made it to the finals in this event. The No. 41 in province L was slightly weaker than the other three, and had no strength to compete for the championship at all.

Now there are only three of him, Chi Lang and Meng Yuqiao left.

Meng Yuqiao and Chi Lang are two extremes. The former has exquisite skills but average physical fitness, while the latter has strong physical fitness but less technical skills.

Compared with the two of them, Gu Ran is more balanced.He has skills, explosive power, good awareness, and is very comprehensive in all aspects.

Under Xu Qing's guidance, Gu Ran began to go through the whole process of skating in his mind before the competition.

According to his thinking, this game is still a contest between him and Meng Yuqiao, but Chi Lang will be the biggest variable.

Sure enough, as soon as the starting gun fired, Chi Lang, who was in the third lane, rushed out.His sprinting speed was fast and powerful, and the powerful swing of his arms made Gu Ran and Meng Yuqiao dare not approach him, for fear that they would shift their center of gravity and fall off the track if they made physical contact with him.

The early sprint stage can not only occupy a favorable position in the competition, but also bring sufficient kinetic energy for the subsequent skating.

Chi Lang runs fast and skates fast, but the handling of details is still his weakness.He only took the lead for one lap, and Meng Yuqiao took the opportunity to overtake him on the second lap.

Immediately afterwards, at the next bend, Gu Ran also overtook her.

Gu Ran didn't look at Chi Lang at all, he only saw Meng Yuqiao in his eyes.Observe his pedaling, handling of corners, and grasp of the route.

Then he discovered that it was probably because Meng Yuqiao's cornering skills were too good. When going through the corners, his body leaned at a very large angle, and he could increase his speed. Fast, the body tilt angle is too large, which destroys the original body balance, and it is difficult to re-establish it in a short time, resulting in deviation from the route.

Gu Ran told herself in her heart - this is the opportunity to surpass him!

Therefore, Gu Ran chose the next corner to turn towards him.

Meng Yuqiao paid special attention to Gu Ran's movements when he entered the corner, and found that this kid was very stable today, and he didn't seem to have any idea about the number one position.It was the fourth lap, and he didn't try to surpass himself, but calmly slid behind.

It seems that the competition has reached the third round, no matter how competitive they are, everyone is more or less tired,

In fact, he himself was the same, but he met Gu Ran again in the final, and this time there were no two big men, Liu Fei and Ren Yongjie, so he thought they could have a hearty competition.

Unexpectedly, that kid didn't have this idea at all.

As a result, Meng Yuqiao's vigilance was also slightly relaxed.

Thinking this way, the other person has already entered the curve, and the rear is still very calm, nothing happened.

However, just as he supported the ice surface with his left hand, pulled the lateral component of the outer edge of the ice blade and the ice surface to the limit, and the speed increased accordingly, Gu Ran behind him suddenly stepped forward with the blade in his hands, sticking tightly to his skin. behind.

The next moment he was exiting the corner, his body was leaning too far, and he had to pull back a little bit to keep his balance, but at the same time, he was forced to sacrifice his original line.

"It's now!" Gu Ran said to herself in her heart, "Rush forward and surpass him!"

He gave himself an order and carried it out immediately.She flew past Meng Yuqiao's side, her arms clinging to her side, without any physical contact with her.

This breakthrough exceeded everyone's expectations, it happened quickly and suddenly, and it was clean and neat, so perfect that it was amazing!

"Wow!!!"

"Oh my god, this time, it's so handsome!!!"

"I thought that without Liu Fei and Ren Yongjie, the 500-meter final would be nothing to watch."

"As long as there is Gu Ran, the game is worth watching."

"As expected of him, he can always bring surprises to people!"

"..."

Of course, Meng Yuqiao was not willing to suffer such a big loss. After being surpassed, he quickly adjusted himself, hoping to overtake.

At the first stop, didn't he overtake Gu Ran on the straight?

Then do it again!

So, speeding up the power of kicking the ice, he continued to move forward with the knife, and in an instant, he was almost side by side with Gu Ran from outsiders, and he was almost, just a little bit, and he could surpass Gu Ran!

At this time, they had come to the next and last corner. Gu Ran was on the inside, and Meng Yuqiao was on the outside. He wanted to use his speed to eat each other raw, but Gu Ran's speed was also very fast.

In the stands, everyone's hearts were raised by them. It was not a wise move for Meng Yuqiao to forcibly overtake at this time.

Meng Yuqiao was also aware of this problem. He couldn't rely on his speed to eat Gu Ran from the outer circle. If he suddenly changed lanes at this time, even if he passed, there would definitely be a penalty after the game.

Therefore, he could only choose to slow down a little, and fell behind Gu Ran.

The competition soon entered the final sprint stage, and it was too late for Meng Yuqiao to chase forward, so in the end she had to follow closely behind Gu Ran and took the second place.

Although the results haven't come out yet, Gu Ran is still very excited.This is the third race, and it is the first time that he crossed the finish line first in the final.

However, the results have not yet come out, and it depends on whether the referee makes a final penalty.

Even so, at the moment when he took off his helmet and goggles, Gu Ran still had a happy smile on his face, which was seen by the audience.