Gong Lijiao, the 35-year-old women’s shot put veteran, will make her fifth appearance on the Olympic stage in Paris, France. For the three-time Olympic medalist, the goal has never changed — to become the champion and bring honor to #TeamChina.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 19-year old, young and inexperienced Gong Lijiao made her Olympic debut on home soil. She finished fifth but later received a bronze medal after the original top two athletes were disqualified. At the 2012 London Olympics, Gong finished fourth and once again was upgraded to a silver medal when the top two finishers were stripped of their medals for doping. However, she found herself underperforming at the 2016 Rio Olympics, in which she ended up landing on fourth place.
But Gong’s persistence and hard work eventually put her atop the Olympic podium. After a dominant performance with a personal best record of 20.58m, Gong finally took home a gold medal for #TeamChina at the Tokyo Olympics — a dream come true!
Gong now sets her eyes on throwing beyond 21 meters as she embarks on her fifth Olympic journey. "My age has changed, but my goals remain the same as before — always striving for the title and aiming for my personal best," she said.
Gong Lijiao, see you in Paris!
#Paris2024 #OlympicGames #shotput