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Crowned as the "fastest woman" in Asia, Li Xuemei sprinted to her first gold of a world multi-sport games with 22.86 seconds in the women's 200m race in the 21st Universiade. At the press conference after the race, she expressed her gratitude to those who have encouraged and helped her while she fell ill.
As she caught a cold over too low an air-conditioned room temperature, Li had to cancel the 100m race she had entered so as to focus on the women's 200m and 4*100m relay. Otherwise, she said, "I would have had to run 10 times." She said both the 100m and 200m are all her majors, "so although I did not drill the 200m very much, I could still handle it."
As for her physical condition, Li said although she had been injured in her achilles tendons and knees, she would keep on training and try to revive to her state in 1997, when she was considred in her peak. "I hope this Universiade would be a turning point of my racing career," said Li.
Speaking of the prospects of the 4*100 relay race tomorrow, Li acknowledge that the newly set-up Chinese team still has problems with handing the baton. Howevere, she said, "we have the potential to reach the first place if we perform a better coordination," adding that "what matters is that we have to be sober and confident."
The silver went to Kim Gevaert of Belgium, the gold medalist of the same event at the last Universiade who also hold Belgium's national record of the 100m at 11.17 seconds and 200m at 22.94.
"I have achieved my personal best," said Gevaert. "Li is better and deserves the gold, while I was able to set a new national record in my last competition this year. I felt very happy."
According to Christophe Delecluse, Gevaert's coach, the Belgian sprinter trains about three hours every day and would become a professional next year after she is graduated from KUL Leuven, where she majors in audiology. Gevaert, who started training at the age of 15, said, "I love the game for it's short, explosive and exciting." And her mission is to "get into the 2004 and 2008 Olympics," said her coach.
The bronze-winner, N. Safronikava of Belarus, said, "I like this Universiade and I am quite satisfied with the result."
(U21net 08/31/2001)
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