Chapter 22

Chen Jian said that Zhang Guan looked very much like a black athlete, which made Zhang Guan laugh awkwardly. Chen Jian then continued, "When competing against black athletes, you must control your own race rhythm. Black athletes usually have a slightly faster pace, which can easily disrupt our normal rhythm, especially with someone like Habibe, who is short. You need to be extra careful."

"Why?" Zhang Guan asked.

"Our country's sprinters are generally around 1.75 meters tall. To be honest, this height is somewhat short on the international stage. The taller the sprinter, the longer the legs, the bigger the stride, and the more powerful the push-off. However, if they are too tall, it can affect the athlete's coordination. Therefore, internationally, the optimal height for sprinters is between 1.85 and 1.90 meters. At this height, the athlete's leg length, explosive power, and coordination are all very perfect, making them best suited for sprinting." Chen Jian looked at Zhang Guan and sighed lightly, "According to this standard, you would be considered too tall if you grew any more. You're already 1.7 meters tall at just 17 years old. What are you eating?"

"I'm probably not going to grow any taller," Zhang Guan said with a smile.

"True, if you grew any taller, you should switch to basketball!" Chen Jian continued, "Habibe is not very tall. The official height is 1.65 meters, but I think he is definitely shorter than that. Short athletes have a disadvantage in leg length, so they have to make up for it with a higher stride frequency. Therefore, his stride frequency will definitely be much faster than yours. If you try to match his frequency, it will not only affect your rhythm but also increase the risk of muscle or ligament injuries."

Chen Jian paused and then instructed, "This is a ranking of 16 teams, with the top eight advancing. As long as we perform normally, we will definitely advance. Once you receive the baton, don't pay attention to the athletes in other lanes. Just focus on the finish line and run straight ahead. Don't let Habibe affect your rhythm."

...

Nigeria is considered a sports powerhouse in Africa and is also the country that exports the most athletes. Many Nigerian athletes have been naturalized to European countries and represent them in sports events. In recent years, some economically prosperous Middle Eastern countries have also begun to naturalize African athletes, with Saudi Arabia and Qatar being prime examples. These naturalized athletes have indeed achieved some success, such as Francis and Ogunode, who have broken Asian records representing Qatar. The short athlete, Habibe, whom Zhang Guan referred to, also won the men's 100 meters at the 2006 Asian Games.

In this race, Habibe and Zhang Guan were both responsible for the fourth leg, and they were only one lane apart.

In the 4x100 meters relay, the first leg is usually assigned to an athlete with good reaction time; the second leg, due to the curves before and after, can cover less distance in the exchange zone, so it is often assigned to the weakest of the four; the third leg is usually assigned to a more technically mature athlete, often a 200-meter specialist; the fourth leg is the fastest athlete on the team, the ace.

Originally, Chen Jian was supposed to run the fourth leg, but since Zhang Guan was a rookie and had just learned how to receive the baton, he could not run the first, second, or third legs, so he was assigned the fourth leg.

After the athletes were ready, the race began. As soon as the gun sounded, the first-leg athletes immediately sprinted from the starting line.

Chen Jian, originally the strongest in the national team and now running the first leg, had a clear advantage over the other first-leg athletes. By the end of the first 100 meters, Chen Jian had already pulled ahead of the others, with only the Saudi athlete Abdullah keeping up.

The second leg, Shen Bao, had strong explosive power and gained a slight lead in the first half of the exchange. However, he was caught up by the Saudi athlete in the second half, maintaining only a slight lead.

The third leg, Yang Yao, faced the Saudi athlete Mubarak, who had run a 10.13-second 100 meters last year, making him a formidable opponent. Fortunately, Yang Yao was a 200-meter specialist and managed to maintain a slight lead as he approached the exchange.

"Zhang Guan, run!" With Yang Yao's shout, Zhang Guan started his sprint.

"Reach out."

Seeing Zhang Guan extend his hand, Yang Yao passed the baton to him and shouted, "Take the baton."

Zhang Guan grabbed the baton and quickly sprinted into the final straightaway.

...

"How could they use the top-hand exchange!" Xiao Lin Jinghe, watching from a distance, exclaimed.

Although Asian track and field levels are weak, they are still professional athletes and would not use the top-hand exchange. Therefore, the Chinese team's use of the top-hand exchange in the final leg surprised Xiao Lin Jinghe.

However, Xiao Lin Jinghe had no time to think further as the athletes had already entered the final straightaway.

In the 4x100 meters relay, the inner lanes start later, while the outer lanes start earlier. Therefore, it is difficult for inexperienced observers to determine the advantage in the first three legs. However, by the fourth leg, after the athletes have turned the corner, the final 100 meters sprint becomes clear.

After entering the straightaway, the Saudi athlete Habibe and Zhang Guan were almost neck and neck, but a closer look revealed that Habibe was slightly ahead.

"Entering my strongest straightaway, once I accelerate, I will quickly leave this Chinese giant behind." With this thought, Habibe immediately began to speed up.

The explosive power of black athletes was perfectly displayed. Despite his short stature, Habibe's stride, rhythm, and arm swing were all clearly faster than the other athletes. Since the 4x100 meters relay includes a starting zone and an exchange zone, Habibe was not starting from a standstill, and he had more distance to accelerate. Therefore, he quickly reached his maximum speed as soon as he entered the straightaway.

But in the next moment, Habibe realized that Zhang Guan, in the adjacent lane, had caught up to him.

"What's going on? I was clearly leading when we entered the straightaway. And I've already reached my top speed, how can he still catch up!" Habibe thought in surprise.

Habibe did not know that Zhang Guan had never run the 200 meters and had only practiced the 4x100 meters relay for a few days, using the top-hand exchange. Therefore, Zhang Guan had a powerful sprinting skill but no technique for running the curves.

In the 4x100 meters relay, the standard track has only 80 meters of straightaway, and the starting and exchange zones for the fourth leg are on the curve. Therefore, Zhang Guan had to run a short curve, which not only negated the slight advantage Chen Jian had initially gained but also allowed the Saudi team to take the lead.

Habibe believed his advantage was in the straightaway, but he did not know that Zhang Guan's advantage was also in the straightaway. Once Zhang Guan entered the straightaway, his sprinting skill was perfectly displayed, and he quickly caught up to and then surpassed Habibe.

"How is this possible? He can still go faster! I don't believe he can maintain this speed throughout the race. Asians can't have this kind of explosive power." Habibe, quickly overtaken by Zhang Guan, did not give up but tried to catch up, hoping Zhang Guan would slow down in the second half.

But Zhang Guan did not slow down until the finish line. The Chinese team won the group with no doubt, and their final time of 39.02 seconds was very ideal and sufficient to ensure their advancement.

However, this time did not break the national record, and Zhang Guan did not earn any skill points. The current national record for the men's 4x100 meters, set in 1995 by Li Xiaoping, Lin Wei, Huang Danwei, and Chen Wenzhong in Gothenburg, is 38.81 seconds. These four athletes have long since retired, with even the youngest, Chen Wenzhong, now a coach in Guangxi Province. This record was not broken until 2010 by Su Fei, Lao Yi, and others.

...

Japan.

Eriko Ichiro is a typical salaryman in his 40s, already a middle manager in his company. However, because he has a son in school and a mortgage, he cannot afford to drive to work and instead takes the cheaper train.

Today, he was able to leave work on time and habitually walked to the newsstand at the station to buy an evening edition of the Asahi Shimbun.

Eriko Ichiro walked to the waiting area and was about to open the newspaper when he heard someone nearby say, "How ridiculous! We Japanese can't even run under 10 seconds, and this Chinese guy is so arrogant, claiming he will break the Asian record!"

Eriko Ichiro's son is also a sprinter at school. Curious, he turned his head and saw that the person next to him was also reading the Asahi Shimbun evening edition.

Driven by curiosity, Eriko Ichiro skipped the front page and went directly to the sports section.

"Chinese people are so imaginative, claiming they will break the 100-meter Asian record! The Asian Athletics Championships? I haven't paid much attention to this event, but I remember a sports channel will broadcast the final. Tomorrow is a rest day, so I can watch it at home." Eriko Ichiro thought to himself.

Not only the Asahi Shimbun evening edition, but other newspapers like the Yomiuri Shimbun evening edition, Mainichi Shimbun evening edition, and Fuji Evening News also reprinted the Philippine media's report, making it a major news item for the Asian Athletics Championships.

At the same time, in the Philippines, which is one time zone ahead of Japan, the last event of the Asian Athletics Championships was about to begin.

This was the men's 100 meters semifinal.

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