[star show] thats what youre like iron men of triathlon

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@Miao Hao Bajie.. Second Brother: Like many kids who enter the sports world, when I was in second grade, my mom sent me to an amateur sports school to learn swimming because I loved playing in the water. From then on, I formed an inseparable bond with sports. I still remember that no matter the weather, I was the one in my class who trained every day. If I missed training due to homework or other reasons, I would be in a bad mood all day.

In early 2006, by chance, I came into contact with the sport of triathlon. At that time, I had only a vague understanding of the sport, knowing just the basics of training and competition rules. However, I thought having my own bike for triathlon would be cool. With the support and encouragement of my family, I went to Beijing alone at the age of 18 to start my professional triathlon career.

The path I chose, I must complete even if I have to crawl. No matter how hard it gets, I can't give up easily. This was my requirement for myself when I first joined the team. Ten years later, I still clearly remember my first training session—a 15-kilometer mountain run at a pace of 4 minutes per kilometer. I gritted my teeth and finished in 1 hour and 1 minute. For the next few days, I could barely walk, my legs felt like they were filled with lead. But even so, I never thought of giving up. I wanted to prove myself here.

The professional team is not a place to slack off; everything depends on strength. If you perform poorly, you can be eliminated at any time, especially for a newcomer like me. At that time, my bike was the worst in the team. To improve, I would train extra at noon, practicing hard under the scorching sun in the back hills of the team. Climbing, descending, turning... I practiced repeatedly, sometimes to the point of heatstroke or vomiting. But even so, I never missed the afternoon training session. After changing my gear in the dormitory, I would throw myself into the afternoon training. While others trained twice a day, I trained three times a day. Through hard work, I finally passed the trial period at the end of 2006 and officially became aprofessional triathlete..

In 2007, I participated in my first official triathlon competition in Yicheng, Hubei. In 2008, I won the men's elite individual championship at the National Champion Cup in Suixian, Henan. At that time, people in the circle were talking: Where did this kid come from, progressing so fast? But the good times didn't last long. Due to unscientific training methods, I developed exercise-induced asthma in 2010. The doctor once advised me to say goodbye to triathlon. For the next two years, I fought against the illness.

During my recovery, I carefully read about the experiences of many excellent professional triathletes. Emma, the women's champion of the Beijing Olympics, had asthma, and the famous Gomez was banned from triathlon due to a heart valve abnormality. But they all returned to the field through their relentless efforts and achieved excellent results. These positive examples strengthened my determination and confidence to recover and resume training. With a love for the sport, I started everything anew. I meticulously arranged training content tailored to myself, controlled the training rhythm, and re-planned every aspect, including diet, using more scientific and reasonable methods to help myself return to the field.

In 2012, Fuzhou was my first stop after my comeback, and it was also the first time I saw Xiaomei. At that time, she was a reporter new to the triathlon field. I saw a beautiful girl from a distance in the transition area and was instantly smitten, but she didn't notice me at all. After the race, I returned to Beijing and found her through Weibo, always hoping to see her again at the next race.

It wasn't until August 2013 in Jiayuguan, more than a year later, that I finally had a chance to talk to her. On the race day, while athletes were warming up, she came to the swimming start platform and said to me, who was hesitating to get into the water: 'Hey, why aren't you in the water yet?' 'The water is too cold,' I replied. Xiaomei glared at me and said, 'If the water is cold, you won't go in?' After hearing that, I plunged into the icy lake. My heart was warm and happy because I finally talked to my goddess! Maybe it was her encouragement before the race that helped me win third place in the men's elite group. This deepened my admiration for Xiaomei.

In early 2014, the national team was training in Kunming. At that time, I injured my right hand and couldn't train normally, so I contacted Xiaomei every day on WeChat and arranged to meet at Beihai Park when the training ended on April 13. That was our first meeting outside the race, and from that meeting, I was determined to 'win her over.'

Yes, I succeeded. I showed more enthusiasm than in training and competitions and finally held Xiaomei's hand. In the following days, I encouraged Xiaomei to join the Ironman community, which earned me the title of 'Coach Hao.' In her first triathlon race at the 2015 Beijing Ironman, she won the age group half-distance runner-up.

At the end of 2015, we entered winter training together. In the morning, I swam 8000 meters in the pool, and every time I surfaced, I could see her tirelessly swimming. In the afternoon, during running training, she ran as long as I did. When we met on the track, her encouraging glance was enough to keep me going. With my lover's company during training, the motivation and passion were even stronger, and the results were naturally more significant.

After a long period of silence, my competitive level in the 2016 season basically returned to the height before my asthma. I also achieved some satisfactory results. More importantly, Xiaomei and I registered our marriage on April 9, marking a double success in career and love. On the day we got our marriage certificate, I wrote on my social media: 'Finally married her, I'll protect you from now on.'

With the support and encouragement of my lover, I participated asChina's only professional athletein the 2016 IRONMAN 70.3 Hefei station and finished eighth in the professional group with a time of 4 hours and 7 minutes, becoming the fastest Chinese in the event. Meanwhile, Xiaomei, whom I brought into the Ironman community, also achieved great results this year. She qualified for the 2017 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Tennessee at the IRONMAN 70.3 Xiamen station. This year, we achieved all the goals we set at the beginning of the year, and all the hard work paid off with deep satisfaction.

Another year has passed, and many people ask me about my expectations and aspirations for 2017. I hope to balance competitions, family, and promotion. As a professional athlete, maintaining my competitive level is an eternal goal. As a husband, taking care of my lover is my duty. As an ordinary person with a sincere love for triathlon, I will do my best to promote the sport in China, sharing my professional knowledge and experience with more triathlon enthusiasts, bringing more people into the sport.

Triathlon has changed my life's trajectory, pointing me in the right direction. Honor, love, friendship... Ten years of Ironman, I have gained so much. Of course, I am just one of many triathletes. Each Ironman has a positive story behind them because this is inherently a sport full of positive energy. Don't hesitate, step in without looking back, and you will meet a better version of yourself and unexpected surprises on this bright Ironman road.