Members of China's women volleyball team pose for photos after the awarding ceremony for the women's final of Volleyball at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Aug. 20, 2016. China won the gold medal. (Xinhua/Yue Yuewei)
After 12 years, China stormed back to capture the women's Olympic volleyball title in Rio on Saturday, beating Serbia, to which China had lost in Group B, 3-1 in the tough final, and making Chinese icon Lang Ping the first person to win Olympic volleyball gold as both a coach and a player.
Under the guidance of history-making Lang Ping, the Chinese women's volleyball team, one of the long-time spearheads of China sports, made a surprising recover from a poor fourth finish in Group B, stunned hosts Brazil which had enjoyed 18-win record in 8 years 3-2 in the quarters, and edged the Group B winners Netherlands 3-1 in the semis.
When spiker Hui Ruoqi's kill sealed the final win over Serbia, all the Chinese players roard into tears and many more hugs followed.
"I have never cried in public for a long time. We deserve the win today as we have the best team work," said captain Hui Ruoqi after the duel.
"I'm really happy for our team. In the past three years, every day we trained hard. Step by step, now we are here. The gold medal is hard-earned by the coaches and players, with their great endeavor," said the 55-year-old coach Lang Ping.
Nicknamed "Iron Hammer", Lang Ping helped China step on world top podium in 1980s in consecutive four times (1981 World Cup, 1982 World Championships, 1984 Olympics, 1985 World Cup), and she also made histories in coaching many club and national teams to top level.
When the Chinese women's volleyball team sank to nadir in the 1990s, Lang Ping took the rein in 1995 and guided the squad to the silver medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and second place at the 1998 World Championships in Japan. She was awarded FIVB Coach of the Year in 1996. She resigned due to health reasons in 1998.
Then she took a coaching position in the Italian league, winning the league championship and the coach of the year award multiple times.
After China snatched Olympic volleyball gold again in Athens 2004, Lang Ping became the coach of the U.S. national team in 2005, and guided the team to beat host China 3-2 in the Beijing Olympics semis before losing to Brazil 3-1 in the final.
Making great contributions to volleyball in Asia, Europe and America, Lang Ping became a legend and icon in world sports.
When the Chinese women's volleyball faced difficulties after the Beijing Olympics, Lang Ping came back in 2013 and directed the team to win the World Cup 2015 in Japan.
She dug out a group of young talents including Zhu Ting, the MVP and the top scorer in Rio with a total of 179 points including a tournament-high 33 in the semifinals against the Netherlands.
Zhu's kill was so powerful that it sent Serbia's Maja Ognjenovic to the floor when China took a 23-22 lead in the fourth set of the final.
Zhu said after the final,"I just tried to show my best. Team work is more important. All my spikes depend on teammates' defense and passes."
"I'm lucky to have coached in volleyball for so many years. It's a rare opportunity for me to be a female volleyball coach around the world. Volleyball is a team sport. One person's capability doesn't count," said Lang Ping.
When China lost its Rio Olympic opener in five sets to the Netherlands back on Aug. 6, Lang Ping urged her players to support one another through the ups and downs.
When China lost to Serbia and the United States, finishing fourth to get a narrow escape from Group B and had to face host Brazil in the quarters, Lang Ping helped her players grow from each defeat on the pressure-packed Olympic stage.
The whole team found a groove in the knockout stage, avenging the Netherlands in the semis and Serbia in the final.
Serbia, who entered the Olympic final for the first time, actually got off to the better start in the final match, cruising to a 25-19 win in the first set. China bounced back with a 25-17 to even the match at 1-1.
The next two sets were much closer. China grabbed a commanding 19-11 lead in the third set, but Serbia crept back to 22-21. China recovered to end the opponents' counterattacks at 25-22.
The fourth set was a seesaw, witnessing 15 ties and neither side took a lead of more than three points at any time. After 23-23, China secured the final two points.
