The Team China training list for the 2024 Summer Paralympics, which will be held from August 28 to September 8 in Paris, includes 27 athletes from Jiangsu Province.
These athletes are training in six events - athletics, swimming, table tennis, sitting volleyball, powerlifting, and wheelchair fencing. They have been braving the heat to take intensive trainings before departure.
Yao Juan, a veteran athlete in shot put, javelin and discus throw events, has played an important role in the training. She hopes to use her experiences, from tactical to psychological and adaptability, to help young athletes win medals. Yao and her teammates have undergone systematic training organized by the Jiangsu Provincial Disabled Persons' Federation and relevant departments.
A native of Wuxi City, Yao has a disability in her left lower limb due to polio at the age of four. However, she has always been enthusiastic about sports. Since 2000, Yao has participated in six Paralympics and has won five gold medals. She holds world records in three events. In the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, she won gold in javelin, becoming the first Chinese athlete to have the national anthem played at the venue Bird's Nest.
The training has entered its final phase as participants are preparing to adjust to the time zone and temperatures of Paris.