Once remembered, twice lived

“After twenty-five years of diving my body exhausted, it’s time to leave”, Olympic Goddess 吴敏霞 (Wú Mǐnxiá) said yesterday at the Appreciation Cocktail Party held in her honour. “Diving is an inseparable part of my life, three-meter springboard was my coliseum. The decision of leaving is very, very sad to me, and sometimes I needed to dream that I could have kept jumping, but no. I cannot because my body does not allow me. When journalists ask me about my records, of course it’s true, I won five gold medals and I’m a record woman, but only I know how bitter and painful the price of success can be. On the other hand, all the years I devoted to diving, however hard they have been, are the most valuable wealth in my life. I will continue to serve the sport as best as I can”. In the third picture from above, she’s toasting her teammates 秦凯 (Qín Kǎi) and 何姿 (Hé Zī), symbolically closing the curtain on her first life. All photos: niugebbs.com.