Sports, a reflection of a nation's spirit, a microcosm of a country's strength. On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, I recall the four athletes mentioned by General Secretary Xi Jinping - Liu Changchun, Rong Guotuan, Xu Haifeng, and Zheng Qinwen. Their life experiences are like a microcosm of the times. In 1932, 1959, 1984, and 2024, four athletes marked the time frame for China to achieve zero breakthroughs on the world stage, spanning nearly a century. A hundred years of storms have transformed the world. This is a century of glorious history for the CPC, a century of standing up, getting rich and becoming strong for the Chinese nation, and a century of Chinese people from "looking up to the world" to "looking up to the world". Liu Changchun, a sprinter, the lonely figure on the starting line is still heartbreaking. That was also a heartbreaking era! The Nine Plains are vast and the land has been sinking for a hundred years, leaving the whole of China lost and unsure of where to go. In the second year of the September 18 Incident, when Liu Changchun, who was tired from sailing and lacked practice, arrived at the 10th Olympic Games in Los Angeles, he was the only Chinese athlete present at the entrance ceremony. Without a doubt, they were eliminated in the preliminary round. How can a barren land carry the dreams of a nation? In his diary, Liu Changchun wrote without hesitation: "In every top three event, the flag of the winning country will be hung high... I add infinite sighs to it." Infinite sighs! However, the world has also experienced the arduous journey of Chinese athletes participating in the Olympic Games for the first time, and sensed the desire of an ancient country that was closed off and opened up by strong ships and cannons to re-enter the world. passing of night. Time has arrived in New China. Table tennis player Rong Guotuan came from Hong Kong to the mainland with a strong sense of patriotism, carrying an application letter that he longed to serve his country. In 1959, at the Dortmund World Table Tennis Championships, he won China's first world championship. Afterwards, the first member of the team to win the world championship and lead the team to win the first women's team world championship, many of China's sports firsts are closely linked to the name Rong Guotuan. That was a period of passionate construction. The people truly become the masters of their own destiny. The heroic ambition of changing the world, building factories, cultivating farmland, and also painting the "latest and most beautiful pictures" on the sports field. Rong Guotuan, Chen Jingkai, Zheng Fengrong, Zhuang Zedong... The names of many sports athletes witness the vigorous progress of the newly born New China. Developing sports and enhancing people's physical fitness, the rejuvenated Chinese sports have begun to emerge on the world stage like a young republic. History is vast. The reform and opening up in 1978 started a new long march of Chinese path to modernization. Change, rebirth, everything is full of vitality. When time entered the 23rd Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 1984, shooter Xu Haifeng fired a shot, achieving a breakthrough of zero Olympic gold medals for China and creating a "great day in the history of Chinese sports". This time, China sent a sports delegation of 353 people and won 15 gold medals. Playing the 'March of the Volunteers' on the world stage is not only the significance of winning the championship, but also the long-awaited wish of millions of people. It is us proving ourselves to the world. During this period, when it comes to sports, what is unforgettable is that the Chinese women's volleyball team achieved an unprecedented "five consecutive championships" in the 1980s, and "learning from the women's volleyball team and revitalizing China" became the strongest voice of the era of striving for the rise of China. Embrace the world, catch up with the world, faster, faster. How China longs to bring back the lost time and catch up with the distance it has fallen! Time strides forward with great strides. China has entered a new era. Approaching the center of the world stage, we are closer than ever to achieving the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The thriving sports have also become a chapter in the history of rejuvenation. In the summer of 2024, Chinese Olympic athletes, those lovely and sunny young people, left sweat, tears, laughter, regret and reluctance, as well as countless emotions and inspirations at the Paris Olympics... This time, we achieved the "best record in the history of participating in the Summer Olympics". Among them, in the highly international sport of tennis, Zheng Qinwen won Asia's first Olympic gold medal in singles tennis, which is full of value. After the game, the heartfelt words full of patriotism were equally moving: 'I have given more strength to the national competition' and 'national honor always surpasses individuals'. Walking with the country, not wasting one's youth. The transformation of four historical scenes spanning nearly a century outlines the changes in the country's destiny and the changes in youth accompanying the country, like a symphony of fate for the times. As General Secretary Xi Jinping has said, "The dreams of each and every one of us, the dream of building a strong sports nation, are closely linked to the Chinese Dream. Without a strong motherland, how can we talk about personal dreams?" General Secretary Xi Jinping has also emotionally shared the "Three Questions of the Olympics" from a hundred years ago. "When can the Chinese send athletes to the Olympic Games? When can Chinese athletes win an Olympic gold medal? When can China host the Olympic Games In 1908, in China, the national situation was in crisis, and people with aspirations had many thoughts of saving the country. These three questions have been answered in full after a century: from Liu Changchun's "solo Olympics" in Los Angeles in 1932, to today's Paris Summer Olympics, where we sent 405 athletes; From Xu Haifeng winning China's first Olympic gold medal in 1984 to this year's Summer Olympics, the total number of Chinese gold medals has exceeded 300; Take another look at the answer to the third question. The 2008 Summer Olympics were unparalleled, and the 2022 Winter Olympics engraved a new chapter in history, making Beijing the world's first "dual Olympic city". The centennial Olympic dream, General Secretary Xi Jinping exclaimed, "is a microcosm of the century long changes." Building, pursuing, and realizing dreams, a China where dreams have been realized one after another. How many times can life be fought? "" If you don't fight now, when will you wait? "Are the mottos of sports, and are they also declarations of China's struggle? Rising up from the brink of being expelled from the football league and starting from poverty, he wrote a powerful chapter in the epic struggle that moved the world. The ambition, backbone and confidence of being a Chinese are constantly strengthened. China's gaze towards gold medals has become more calm, and its gaze towards the world has become more confident. After years of development, China's post-70s, post-80s, post-90s, and post-00s generations have gone abroad and can now look at the world with confidence, "General Secretary Xi Jinping's words have won deep resonance on the vast land. The prosperity of national sports leads to the prosperity of sports, and the strength of a country leads to the strength of sports. In sports, there are times, spirits, national strength, and people's livelihoods. At one time, the Chinese were called "the sick man of East Asia". The image of pale complexion, thin body, and weak breathing is a portrayal of the times when people were struggling to make ends meet. In 1917, the magazine "New Youth" published an article titled "Research on Sports", and the author "Twenty eight Painting Students" was the young Mao Zedong. Civilization in its spirit, barbarism in its physique "expresses the aspirations and dreams of Chinese youth in the era of poverty and weakness. Over the past century, sports have created a more magnificent picture for the people and the country. Chinese style modernization and national health are closely linked. National health requires national sports, which can lead to strong competitive sports. General Secretary Xi Jinping deeply understands the inherent logic of sports and anchors the modernization of all Chinese people. Today, national fitness has become a national strategy, and a sports powerhouse and a healthy China share weal and woe. A few years ago, when bidding for the Winter Olympics, General Secretary Xi Jinping focused on "driving 300 million people to participate in ice and snow sports". The international community has also praised China's participation in ice and snow sports, stating that "China won a 'gold medal' before the opening ceremony". During his inspection of the preparations for the Winter Olympics in 2017, General Secretary Xi Jinping also mentioned China's average life expectancy, which increased from 35 years in 1949 to 76.7 years in 2017. This number has reached 78.6 years old today, the highest level in history. A rapidly changing China, striving and honing, constantly refreshing history. China has undergone tremendous changes, and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process, "General Secretary Xi Jinping said at the reception celebrating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, beating drums to urge the expedition. The road to building a strong sports nation reveals the path to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. (New Society)