In the office, Coach He had a smile on his face. He poured a glass of water for Zhang Guan himself, and then said, "Zhang Guan, you don't need to participate in the team trials in a few days!"
"Not participating? Why?" Zhang Guan asked.
"After discussion within the team, we will directly give you a spot in the Asian Championships, so you don't have to participate in the qualifiers." Coach He said.
"Give me a spot directly? Why?" Zhang Guan asked in confusion.
Coach He organized his language and then said, "Actually, this is the case. Our triathlon team's new sponsor this year hopes to give you a spot to directly participate in the Asian Championships."
"It's because of the sponsors!" Zhang Guan nodded silently.
The triathlon team has signed several new sponsors this year, including competition clothing, shoes, bicycles, etc. These sponsors are actually for Zhang Guan's fame, otherwise who would be idle? To sponsor a triathlon that my grandma doesn’t love and my uncle doesn’t love
For sponsors, since they spend money to sponsor, they naturally need to pay back, and this kind of reward is to let Zhang Guan use their sponsored products and appear on the competition field. If you can reach the Olympic level, it would be best for the whole world to see it. If you can't reach the Olympic level, it would be good to participate in an Asian championship.
Zhang Guan also knew about the sponsors. It is also for this reason that Coach He has always been very polite to Zhang Guan, even responding to every request. The triathlon team obviously regards Zhang Guan as the God of Wealth.
In fact, triathlon, an Olympic event that focuses on participation, is really poor. For example, some small sponsors, if it were for the table tennis team, they would not even bother to look at it, but in triathlon In the eyes of the team, that is a huge sum of money that must be obtained.
Therefore, in Coach He's view, it doesn't matter whether Zhang Guan can achieve results, but being able to attract sponsorship is the most important thing. After all, triathlon, as a disadvantaged sport in China, receives relatively few resources, and their need for sponsors is far more urgent than other projects.
"In this case, wouldn't it be unfair to other athletes?" Zhang Guan asked.
"Actually, there's nothing fair or unfair." Coach He shook his head and continued: "Our men's team is relatively weak. Even in competitions within Asia, we just get a good ranking. It is also more difficult to win medals. This Asian Athletics Championships, as a qualifying event for the Olympic Games, actually only has one direct quota to London, and our chances of getting it are very slim. So no matter who we send, it will be the same."
"Uh..." Zhang Guan suddenly became speechless.
Coach He's idea is very simple. He won't be able to get a quota for the Olympics anyway, so it would be better to send Zhang Guan to Japan directly to give Zhang Guan a personal favor and satisfy the sponsor's requirements at the same time.
"Are our strength really that weak?" Zhang Guan asked involuntarily.
"It's really that weak." Coach He said helplessly: "In the triathlon event, the current top brother in Asia is Japanese player Yuichi Hosoda. He is the only person in Asia who can qualify for the Olympics by relying on world rankings. Except for Hosoda In addition to Yuichi, Japan's Tayama Hirohi is also very powerful. He once finished 13th at the 2004 Athens Olympics! He is the biggest favorite to win this Asian Championship. In addition, Japan also has a man named Yamamoto Ryosuke He is a veteran who is good at swimming and long-distance running. He once won the runner-up in the Asian Games. I don’t know if he will participate this time. If he also participates, it is estimated that the top three will be taken by the Japanese team."
The fact that Zhang Guan directly obtained a quota for the Asian Championships did not cause dissatisfaction within the triathlon team. The competition in the men's triathlon team is not as fierce as that of the women's team, and the level of players is indeed limited. Even if they go to the Asian Championships competition, and there is no hope of getting a spot in the Olympics.
On the contrary, Zhang Guan's arrival attracted sponsors and improved the training and living conditions of the team members a lot. At least they now have good food, good clothes, and good use. This is in the eyes of the team members. Come, but it is something real, much better than the illusory Olympic qualifications. These are real things that can guarantee them a further step in domestic competitions.
…
As the host of the Asian Triathlon Championship, Japan naturally aims to win the championship.
Although the competition only officially started on April 8, as early as two weeks ago, the head coach of the Japanese triathlon team had already received the list of participants for the Asian Triathlon Championships. This is also the benefit of being a host. You can know in advance which opponents there will be, while other countries can only find out after the organizer announces it.
The head coach of the Japanese triathlon team is Hideki Yamane. She was a professional triathlete and one of the first female triathletes in Japan.
At this time, coach Hideki Yamane has obtained the list of contestants from various countries and is checking one by one to see if there are any opponents worth noting.
"South Korea sent Xu Minhao and Jin Zhushuang this time! That's fine, I'll teach you some lessons this time! Don't always think that you are great!" Yamane Hideki thought silently.
The birthplace of triathlon is the US military in Hawaii, so it was naturally introduced to Japan, South Korea and other countries with American troops stationed relatively early. In comparison, the Japanese are more accepting of American culture, while the Koreans are more exclusive. Therefore, the development of this sport in Japan is much better than that in South Korea, and the Japanese team is also stronger than the Korean team.
"Kazakhstan's Gag and Smurov are also participating. They should be the biggest stumbling block for our Japanese team to win the championship." A cold light flashed in Yamane Hideki's eyes.
In addition to the South Korean team, what coach Hideki Yamane fears the most is the Kazakhstan team.
Kazakhstan is a multi-ethnic country, of which more than 20% are Caucasian. They were once part of the former Soviet Union, so most of the Caucasians are Russians, and there are also a small number of Germanic descendants. Caucasians have innate advantages in triathlon that the Japanese cannot match. Fortunately, Kazakhstan is not a developed country and its training level is relatively average, so it is not yet a match for the Japanese team.
Kazakh player Garg is of Germanic descent, with typical white skin and yellow hair. He once won a bronze medal in the Asian Games; while Smurov is Russian. Both of them are pure Caucasians, and their level is not much worse than that of Japanese players.
Yamane then checked the list of players. Hong Kong's Wei Anzu, Singapore's Liu Jianzhong, and Philippines' Villegas also appeared on the list. For Yamane, these are all old acquaintances.
The level of triathlon in Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines is also very good, mainly because they started earlier. Both Singapore and the Philippines have US troops stationed there, so they participated in triathlon as early as the 1980s. Hong Kong Island was a British colony before the handover, so there are also athletes engaged in triathlon.
"I don't know who the Chinese team will send to compete this time." Hideki Yamane found the list of Chinese team players, and then he saw a familiar name.
"Zhang Guan!" Hideki Yamane couldn't help but exclaimed.
Chapter 2 has been delivered, please give me a guaranteed monthly ticket. Thanks to Red Wenwu, Dongfang Yiying, ____ Nightmare, Duocai Ni, Bubble 2016, and Devil Coco for the rewards!
(End of chapter)