IBABS Chapter 79 — Post-Race Results & Public Opinion & Shao Xingchen's Brief Appearance

Just the word “boiling” didn’t even begin to describe the atmosphere at the venue. As of tonight, this was the second medal that the Chinese team had won at this World Indoor Athletics Championships, and also the second silver medal that the national track and field team’s sprinters had ever earned at this event!

In the stands, the crowd was celebrating Su Zhe’s result without restraint. They waved little red flags, some even loudly sang the national anthem, feeling proud and honored by Su Zhe’s performance.

At the commentary booth, Zhang Jing and Wang Miaochuan were also expressing their excitement, though with a bit more restraint.

Wang Miaochuan emotionally commented, “Before this competition began, Sports Channel had a special program discussing the significance of our country hosting the World Indoor Athletics Championships. Some people pointed out that in indoor competitions, many events that our country’s track and field team excels at have been reduced, which is equivalent to using our team’s weak events to compete against the world’s bes. In terms of final competition results, it would be difficult to achieve the goal of encouraging the public to understand track and field.”

“It’s true that we don’t hold many advantages in indoor track and field, but that alone isn’t a reason to avoid hosting the event!” ang Miaochuan’s voice grew slightly more intense. “In competitive sports, we can’t expect to always compete using our strengths against others’ weaknesses. What we need to do is develop our weaker disciplines, gradually make our overall program stronger, and eventually compete with other nations’ strong events.”

Beside him, Zhang Jing nodded in agreement, “Exactly, the purpose of hosting this event is precisely to spread the infLüence of track and field events, allowing more people to experience the charm of world-class athletics right here in our own country. From these two days of competition, I believe the spectators here have already felt the unique charm of track and field events!”

Just as the two commentators said, the audience, after seeing Su Zhe’s ranking, was swept into an irrepressible sea of joy. Everyone was happily cheering, hugging, and celebrating.

On the track, by the finish line foam wall, Su Zhe leaned back against it after slowing down, looking at the audience’s wild celebration. Suddenly, his mind felt a bit dazed.

What place had he gotten again?

It seemed like… second?

Second place meant a silver medal?

He won a medal?

It wasn’t until this thought fully formed that Su Zhe truly processed what he had achieved. After crossing the finish line, his mind had gone almost blank, but now excitement gradually started to flood in.

He did it! He won the silver medal in the men’s 60m sprint!

“Su Zhe!!! You’re incredible!!! We’re proud of you!!!”

“Great job, Su Zhe!!”

The passionate, pure shouts from the audience began to reach Su Zhe’s ears. He pushed himself away from the foam wall, stood up straight, and slowly scanned the venue.

This indoor venue that could only hold less than 5,000 people was much smaller than the stadium in Country D, but the audience area was also much closer to the athletes.

Su Zhe saw that in the 360-degree circular seating, everyone’s faces were fLüshed red. From in their mid-teens to uncles and aunts in their fifties and sixties, they were all ecstatic about his achievement. Their joy and pride at this very moment were all because of him.

This realization made Su Zhe’s nose sting slightly, and his eyes grew a little red.

The audience at the venue, and even the audience watching the live broadcast, and his fans… Suddenly, Su Zhe once again deeply realized that on the track, he carried so many expectations on his shoulders. Countless people had their hearts tied to him, sharing his tension, celebrating his victories, and feeling the pain of his mistakes and faiLüres.

This kind of burden and sense of responsibility that came with being needed enveloped Su Zhe more intensely than ever before. He raised a hand to sweep his slightly damp bangs back and discreetly wiped the moisture from the corner of his eye. Then, he solemnly and seriously bowed to the audience in the 360-degree circular seating to show his respect.

On the field, reporters had rushed over the moment the race ended, swarming around every finalist to capture photos for their stories.

Following Xu Zhi’s cue, the sports channel cameraman temporarily bypassed the gold medalist, Evanson, and headed straight for Su Zhe. From the moment Su Zhe was still leaning against the foam wall in a daze, to his heartfelt bow to the crowd, the cameraman meticulously recorded it all.

Up in the commentary booth, after sharing a few emotional remarks, Zhang Jing and Wang Miaochuan turned to Su Yinsheng with a smile and asked how he felt about Su Zhe’s performance today.

Although Su Yinsheng still maintained his serious expression, his relaxed state at this moment said everything, “Su Zhe was in good form today. I’d say his competitive condition reached a short-term peak, which allowed him to unleash his full potential.”

Wang Miaochuan grinned and followed up, “Well, we all know that when coaches make annual training plans for athletes, they consider the athlete’s peak condition. So Su Zhe’s personal condition reaching its peak at this World Indoor Athletics Championships was also carefully adjusted by the coaching staff, right?”

Su Yinsheng nodded, “AbsoLütely. Su Zhe’s training plan this year was arranged by Lao Lü and me according to a double cycle. The first peak condition was for this indoor championships cycle. From the current results, this cycle adjustment was quite successful…”

Just as the commentators wrapped up their discussion,, the judging panel also sent the final results to the booth.

Zhang Jing cheerfully announced Su Zhe’s final results to the live and broadcast audiences, “World Indoor Athletics Championships men’s 60m sprint event, first place: Evanson (USA), 6.43 seconds, second place: Su Zhe (China) 6.48 seconds, third place: Gates (USA) 6.51 seconds…”

Once the medalists’ results were announced, the stadium erupted into celebration again. Starting from somewhere in the crowd, a rhythmic chant of Su Zhe’s name spread like wildfire.

“Su Zhe! Su Zhe! Su Zhe! Su Zhe!”

The unified voices echoed through the venue, much like concert audiences led by a drummer, calling together and inviting the singer to return for an encore.

But unlike a concert, in this indoor stadium, there was no drummer or staff guiding the crowd. Every shout came purely from the audience’s own excitement, admiration, and gratitude for Su Zhe.

Down on the track, Xu Zhi was also smiling as he conducted a live interview with Su Zhe.

Zhang Jing and Wang Miaochuan had already shifted focus to the live interview under the director’s cue.

“First of all, a huge congratulations!” Xu Zhi’s voice was also filled with overflowing joy, “In the first world-class event of 2020, you’ve won your very first world-level medal!”

Su Zhe’s face was also constantly smiling as he thanked Xu Zhi.

With the audience’s passionate cheers still roaring in the background, Xu Zhi continued, “Viewers at home can probably hear the crowd chanting Su Zhe’s name nonstop. It’s clear that his performance today has lifted everyone’s spirits! So Su Zhe, in your pre-race interview, you confidently announced that you would definitely make it to the finals. Did you already have confidence and a feeling about winning a medal today?”

Su Zhe shook his head, “Actually, I didn’t. Before the race, the goal I set for myself was to run my best and hopefully make it into the top five. In the 60m event, there are many strong competitors. Based on my daily training results, although I had some confidence in making the top five, there were still too many uncertain factors in the finals. Especially in the 60m event, the race is extremely short. Even a slight delay in reaction time off the blocks could greatly affect the final result…”

“So, my mindset has always been to focus on myself first, to perform at my personal best during the race. Fortunately, the coaching staff adjusted my training cycle perfectly, allowing me to compete in peak condition. That’s a major reason why I was able to achieve this result today.”

“Your 6.48 seconds today is only 0.03 seconds away from your senior Chen Zhi’s personal best, which is also our country’s 60m sprint record of 6.45 seconds. Have you thought about surpassing Chen Zhi’s record?”

This question made Su Zhe smile. “Of course I’ve thought about it. As an athlete, who wouldn’t want to break their own records? Who wouldn’t want to refresh records and create history? But you have to eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time. I’ll continue working hard and strive to compete with Xiao Zhi-ge as soon as possible.”

This live interview wasn’t long, but it satisfied the viewers in front of TVs and computers.

As Su Zhe was leaving the track, the audience was still buzzing with excitement. While walking off, from the corner of his eye he spotted a spectator in the audience stands wearing a mask and baseball cap.

Even from a distance, this person looked very familiar to Su Zhe.

He looked in that direction for two or three seconds, then suddenly smiled and waved at that spectator sitting quietly in their seat, before leaving with a smile.

In the direction where Su Zhe waved, the audience erupted into cheers at his unexpected gesture, while a certain young man in a baseball cap sitting in his seat showed a gentle smile behind his mask.

The impact of tonight’s competition results naturally extended far beyond just the venue.

Online, the Track and Field Kingdom forum, Weibo, major news apps, video websites, and more had all been boiling over the final results of this competition.

On the Track and Field Kingdom forum, the sprint section was completely flooded. Dozens of posts filled the front page, all celebrating Su Zhe’s achievement tonight. The place was roaring with shouts of “Zhe-shao is awesome!”

For a moment, no one cared about forum rules like “no spamming,” and the forum moderators temporarily relaxed their management to join in this celebration.

On Weibo, major official media outlets all posted Su Zhe’s results and ranking from this competition.

…

Besides these official media and sports-related news outlets, various sef-media creators also jumped on the bandwagon, producing content tied to the hot topic of the moment.

On a night like this, no matter where gossip lovers went, they were treated to highlights of Su Zhe’s stunning performance on the 60m track.

Many of these netizens couldn’t help but share their thoughts after reposting the news.

Besides these entertainment industry gossip lovers, various sports influecers naturally wouldn’t miss commenting on Su Zhe’s performance in this competition.

Including Tao Sheng, Uncle Eyes, Lao Bai’s Track & Field Insights, and even Track and Field for Beginners run by Su Zhe’s Philosophers, almost eighty percent of sports bloggers gradually released their own essays written for this competition.

Of course, among them, Teacher Tao Sheng and the Philosophers still had the deepest affection for Su Zhe.

Just as sports influencers were busy discussing Su Zhe’s performance, another minor topic related to today’s event began trending on Weibo.

#Shao Xingchen Spotted at Indoor Championships#

?!

What was this topic about?

Shao Xingchen’s fans, the “Satellites,” clicked on the topic as soon as they noticed it. Inside, they found posts from bystanders who had captured photos of a young man in a down jacket, baseball cap, and mask during security checks, where he was taking off his outer clothes and mask for inspection.

From the angles of the photos, this person going through security really seemed to be their boss?!

After tentatively confirming that the person in the photos was indeed Shao Xingchen, the fans’ first thought was – did he go to watch Su Zhe’s live competition again?

As the topic climbed the rankings, the Satellites gradually discovered some laughing passersby inside.

After confirming that the topic contained nothing negative about their idol, the Satellites first breathed a sigh of relief, then couldn’t help but express their feelings in their own group chat.

Because Su Zhe’s topics that night were really too hot, even the topic of Shao Xingchen possibly attending the competition didn’t attract too much attention.

At most, there was a fan who posted on Weibo, showing off her ticket for the March 3rd competition, excitedly saying:

Somehow, this fangirl’s post somehow got shared outside the fandom and received countless blessings.

N City, Indoor Athletics Stadium, Athletes’ Lounge

After leaving the venue and getting his phone back, Su Zhe casually opened WeChat and sure enough saw a message from Shao Xingchen.

While casually chatting with the big star, Su Zhe made his way out of the stadium, found the gathering point for the Chinese team, and met up with his dad, Zheng Wensheng, and the others. Together, they boarded the bus back to the athletes’ accommodation center.

On the way back, Su Zhe continued chatting idly with Shao Xingchen. It wasn’t until he reached his dorm that they finally wished each other goodnight.

Victory.

What a sweet word.

Su Zhe narrowed his eyes and stretched out on his bed. Tomorrow’s semi-finals and finals were going to be tough battles. He had to give it his all!

After psyching himself up, Su Zhe closed his eyes and slept peacefully through the night.