How to refine the new "World Frog King"? Qin Haiyang: With the determination to win three championships, participate in the World Championships banner | Qin Haiyang | Champion

The Shanghai Oriental Green Boat Sports Training Base features prominent banners depicting the glorious achievements of Qin Haiyang. He, who has just won three gold medals in breaststroke at the Chengdu Universiade, is here preparing for the Hangzhou Asian Games.

Qin Haiyang: About six hours, three hours in the morning and three hours in the afternoon.

Qin Haiyang: In the state of a world champion.

Qin Haiyang: I think the state of a world champion is more relaxed and confident.

A month ago, at the 2023 Fukuoka Swimming World Championships in Japan, Tan Haiyang won the gold medals in the men's 50 meter, 100 meter, and 200 meter breaststroke events. At the same time, he broke the world record for the 200 meter breaststroke with a time of 2:05.48. His personal achievements have filled the 66 year gap in China's breaststroke event. After the competition, Qin Haiyang wrote on his personal social media account, "On the way to the summit, even if the road is steep and difficult to climb, one should still be at the top; even if no one can climb, one should remain determined." Looking back on the journey to the summit, on the eve of the Fukuoka World Championships, he stopped at the front of the Glory List of the General Administration of Sport's Swimming Pool, which can be said to be a crucial moment.

Qin Haiyang: The Glory List includes both Olympic and world champions. Olympic champions, for example, are in the first row, while world champions are in the lower row. Then I stand in front and watch.

Qin Haiyang: Where do I hang up after watching me compete? really

Qin Haiyang: Yes.

Qin Haiyang: Actually, it would be great if I could hang it up. Before the competition, I saw it as a necessary path for me. I definitely want to win these three championships. If I can't win these three championships, I won't talk about the Olympics.

Qin Haiyang: Because I never thought about failure, I am determined to win.

With the determination to win three championships, Qin Haiyang came to the Fukuoka World Championships. On July 24th, in the men's 100m breaststroke final, Qin Haiyang, who ranked fourth, established his advantage after entering the water. When he swam to the last 15 meters, he felt the feeling of impending success.

Qin Haiyang: The entire body and nerves are actually a highly concentrated point, all focused on moving forward.

In the men's 100m breaststroke final, this 24-year-old boy won China's first men's breaststroke world championship, breaking his own Asian record with a time of 57.69 seconds. The 18 year journey from learning to swim at the age of 6 to winning the first world championship medal may start with Qin Haiyang being thrown into the water by his coach.

Qin Haiyang: When I was young, I didn't like to go into the water. I was also thrown down by the coach, that's all.

Qin Haiyang: Yes.

Qin Haiyang: Not really.

Qin Haiyang: I didn't plan on doing it in the future, anyway, it's just a sport.

Qin Haiyang is a native of Hunan, born in 1999. At the age of 9, he studied swimming for three years and went from Hunan to Minhang District Youth Sports School in Shanghai. One year later, he was selected to join the Navy swimming team for trial training. Coach Ye Jin, who had trained famous generals such as Qi Hui and Ning Zetao, gave Qin Haiyang a nickname: "Calm Brother". Because Qin Haiyang is slow in everything he does, but his training is very conscious and his comprehension is very high. Many technical essentials, as long as Ye Jin explains them once, Qin Haiyang can do very well. In the first Youth Games swimming competition in 2015, 16-year-old Qin Haiyang won two gold medals in the men's 100m and 200m breaststroke. Afterwards, he successively won the men's 200 meter breaststroke championship at the National Swimming Championships and the Qingdao National Championships. However, in the 2016 Rio Olympics qualifiers, Qin Haiyang was not selected. In his own words, that time was just a little short.

Qin Haiyang: It's almost half a second, less than 0.5.

Qin Haiyang: Yes, yes, and then I feel very regretful.

Qin Haiyang: Later on, I just wanted to go back and refuel for training.

In 2017, Qin Haiyang won the championship in the men's 200m breaststroke final at the 13th National Games with a time of 2:07.35 seconds. In 2018 and 2019, he won the runner up in the men's 200m breaststroke at the Short Pool Swimming World Championships and the World Military Games, respectively. In 2021, he successfully participated in the Tokyo Olympics. In the men's 200 meter breaststroke preliminary, he swam 2 minutes and 08.48 seconds, ranking first in the group. However, the blow came as he was disqualified from the competition due to a foul.

Qin Haiyang: It's more of a question.

Qin Haiyang: There are also underwater lenses.

Qin Haiyang: There's nothing to say. Actually, the most uncomfortable thing may not be the competition results, but the most uncomfortable thing may be that this matter is quite embarrassing.

Qin Haiyang: In anyone's opinion, it is a rather foolish mistake.

The so-called foolish mistake of Qin Haiyang stems from the habit of connecting a freestyle leg to a breaststroke leg after turning underwater, and changing exercise habits is not easy. At this moment, Ye Jin, Qin Haiyang's mentor, stood up. Although the naval training team was facing disbandment at the time, Ye Jin still ran around to find a fixed training ground for Qin Haiyang. In addition to using underwater cameras for analysis, she even specifically placed a stick on Qin Haiyang's leg, allowing him to feel the movement position in the water.

Qin Haiyang: Yes.

Qin Haiyang: Just like dancing, which action must be made what it looks like.

Qin Haiyang: Anyway, it's not easy, and it also took a lot of effort.

Qin Haiyang: Yes, there will be, but there is no other way, we can only accept it.

After a year of difficult competition, in August 2022, Qin Haiyang went to Beijing to start training. He had a new team and studied under Shanghai coach Cui Denrong. Cui Denrong was also the meritorious coach who took Zhang Yufei step by step onto the Olympic podium.

Qin Haiyang: It means a new beginning, just like what I said shattered the process of reshaping.

Qin Haiyang: The previous concept was that it was necessary to swim more before the competition to maintain one's form, but Cui guided his philosophy to swim less and focus on improving one's physical strength.

Qin Haiyang: He also respects athletes.

Qin Haiyang: Because the ultimate manifestation is a result, perhaps not knowing what is right, but knowing what is wrong.

Whether it was Zhang Yufei or earlier Lu Ying, the breakthrough period in performance mainly came from the improvement of technology. For Qin Haiyang, Cui Denrong also chose to start with technology.

Qin Haiyang: Yes, it's quite similar. For example, there may be a slight difference in the effect of water skiing between slightly tilting the palm and turning it back. If you have a slight difference every time, then your entire journey will actually have a significant impact. I think there will be reviews saying that I swam the first 150 meters effortlessly, with fewer movements than others, and at the same distance, others may need to take one and a half movements, while I only need one movement.

Qin Haiyang: Personally, I think one is water sensitivity, and there is also a systematic physical training.

While emphasizing technical details, Cui Denrong also strengthened Qin Haiyang's strength training, and his training plan for core muscle groups was more refined.

Qin Haiyang: Because breaststroke requires a lot of leg strength, especially for short distances, it needs to be very explosive.

Qin Haiyang: It's just an iron sheet.

Qin Haiyang: Around 160 to 180 kilograms, I feel like it's just completing the basic shaping.

Qin Haiyang: After completing land training, you need to convert what you have trained on land into water. How can you better reflect this training result into the water.

During the more than a year spent with Cui Denrong, Qin Haiyang, who used to consider swimming as a job, gradually learned to enjoy swimming.

Qin Haiyang: He is very good at boosting team members and cheering them on.

Qin Haiyang: Confidence is about communication, and we highly respect the actions and ideas of athletes.

Qin Haiyang, who participated in the Fukuoka Swimming World Championships in 2023, has undergone a transformation. He achieved his wish and won three gold medals that he was determined to win. Then, he reached the critical point of the 200 meter breaststroke. In the semi-finals, Qin Haiyang ranked second, and his biggest opponent was the current world record holder, Australia's Staboti Cook.

Qin Haiyang: At that time, I thought the competition was the most difficult, really.

Qin Haiyang: Before May, the early preparations for the war were all aimed at winning the 100 meter mark.

There was a day between the semi-finals and finals of the 200 meter breaststroke, and on that day, Qin Haiyang's mentality changed.

Qin Haiyang: Actually, after swimming the semi-finals, I also want to win second place, which doesn't matter. It's just this attitude, maybe this mentality has lasted for me all day.

Qin Haiyang: Yes, yes, I did rest quite well, but when I got up, because I was about to go out for a competition, I thought to myself, for a moment, I felt like I couldn't do it. Even if I would lose, I must go and not let him win easily.

Qin Haiyang: Yes, it's on the way to the racecourse by bus.

Qin Haiyang: About twenty minutes.

Qin Haiyang: My mentality and confidence have come up. Even if I lose, I still have to stand and die like that.

Qin Haiyang: Yes, I think this may be the biggest key point to unleash potential. Yes, I am very determined to win three gold medals.

In the men's breaststroke 200 meter final, all athletes began to enter the field. Before entering the field, Qin Haiyang and seven other athletes punched each other and encouraged each other. In the final, Qin Haiyang and Cook were ranked fifth and fourth tracks respectively. The starting gun fired, and Qin Haiyang took the lead in exerting his force, overwhelming his opponent in the first place in the 100 meter half distance. The crucial third 50 meters, Qin Haiyang's state of divine bravery still did not give Cook a chance. In the final 50 meters, Qin Haiyang sprinted and led all the way to the finish line, breaking the world record with a time of 2:05.48 seconds to win another championship, winning all three gold medals in the breaststroke event at this World Championships, and also his fourth gold medal at this World Championships.

Qin Haiyang: Just believe in yourself, really, just like my state before the finals, believe in yourself.

Qin Haiyang: I actually prefer another sentence, which is called "The young man with fresh clothes and angry horses, who doesn't know Qin Haiyang?"

Qin Haiyang: I believe it will be a new beginning, because achieving such results will definitely provide feedback for the entire team to summarize and learn. With such a result, communicating this better training mode with everyone will also lead to better results, and the results will definitely get better and better.

After this battle, Qin Haiyang won 4 gold medals in this year's breaststroke competition, and he will undoubtedly become the target of various strong players in the breaststroke event. Regarding the pressure brought by winning a gold medal, Qin Haiyang said, "After winning a gold medal, it's there to hang it, rather than constantly wearing it on oneself. I won't let it become pressure. Every competition is a new challenge, because others are also working hard and improving."

Qin Haiyang: Yes, maybe it's just that I care too much about the outcome. I feel like I have too many burdens on me, and I always want to succeed. I always want to prove something.

Qin Haiyang: I enjoy every training session very much now, and I am also very dedicated to thinking about how to improve every training session.

Qin Haiyang: Yes, actually one year would be just right.

Qin Haiyang: I can steadily win the gold medals in the 100 and 200 meters, which is something I need to do in a year. If I do these processes well, there won't be as much pressure during the competition.