OlymPicks: Silver Medal Swimmer Zhang Lin Talks Diving Into the Deep End

OlymPicks is an ongoing blog series wherein we highlight news, gossip, and developments regarding the buildup to Beijing's 2022 Winter Olympics.

Before he became a silver medal Olympian or the current world record holder of the 800-meter freestyle, Beijing-born star swimmer Zhang Lin was afraid to even get in the water.

During one of his first lessons as a seven-year-old, his coach asked the then timid Zhang: “‘Are you getting in or not?’ And when I hesitated, he said ‘Ok…’ then boom! Pushed me in,” the now 32-year-old retired competitive swimmer recalls, as dozens of students from the Western Academy of Beijing’s (WAB) swim team gathers at their campus’ auditorium to watch him speak and answer their questions.

When we meet him, Zhang is wearing the same Team China team zip-up sweater that he donned at the Opening Ceremony of the 2008 Games. Even a decade later, that sweater is still crisp, emblazoned with a red China flag, Olympic logo, and Nike insignia. It also fits the former pro's still-trim frame perfectly, even though his face looks less boyish than the last time he wore it.

While Zhang is now grateful for his coach’s tough love on that first day at the pool, at the time he complained to his mother about being pushed too hard in every sense of the word. The WAB students laughed when he recounted how his mother nonchalantly asked: "You didn’t die when he pushed you in, right? So keep going."

Although she knew little about swimming or athletics in general, Zhang’s mother believed in his potential and had a practical knack for helping him – taking careful note of what the coach had tasked him with and ensured Zhang always completed his sit-ups, pushups, and other work assigned to him at home.

Slowly but surely, the pressure, discipline, and perseverance paid off, at least in Zhang’s eyes. "As I progressed my coaches would tell me I was quite good, though I think that was just to keep me encouraged and motivated to come to each class," Zhang says. However, the tone and timber of all that changed when, at 16-years-old, he placed eighth in the 800-meter freestyle swim of the World Champion Cup.

After that, his practices and regiment grew far more intense. And there were times, before important races, where he still felt anxious before diving in the water: “Before those times I would find ways to try to calm myself down, sometimes by listening to soothing music, sometimes by finding a quiet place to just put my head down and scream until I let all the nervous energy out.”  

Any time he felt frustrated with his performance at one of those races or practices, Zhang says, "I’d just force myself to jump back in the water again later, and keep trying," all of which made his silver medal win at the Olympics all the more satisfying.

Before giving that talk to the students at WAB, Zhang briefly granted a rare interview to the Beijinger, and said he is not only grateful to have had his own opportunity to struggle and thrive as an Olympian. He says the 2008 Olympics was also a watershed moment for athleticism across the country, prompting more "diversity in sports, making it more open to the public in China, and offering China’s athletic industry more commercial opportunities and more interaction with the outside world."

As the 2022 Winter Olympics approach, he is also encouraged to see more young Chinese athletes train and study abroad, all the better to hone their skills for the forthcoming Games. "I see it as a great way for us to exchange cultures and skills," Zhang says.

READ: 7 Fun Beijing Races to Kickstart Your Summer Exercise Routine

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Photo: China Daily, EPA (via the Telegraph), courtesy of WAB