Xinhua News Agency, Rennes, France, June 6th question: the heart of the champion-the past of the Chinese women’s football World Cup
Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Yi, Yue Dongxing
2019 women’s football World Cup war will be ignited in France on 7th, the Chinese women’s football team will launch another impact on the top of the world. Looking back at the history of the World Cup, the Chinese women’s football team has created glory and left regrets between ups and downs, but it has never lost its heart to be the champion forever.
China, the birthplace of the women’s football World Cup
“turn all love into a dream and start a youth journey in the Eastern sunshine. Let all hearts turn into seven rainbows and join hands in the burning oath to cross the peak of the world.”
It must be a senior Chinese women’s football fan who can look at the above sentence and hum the tune. This is the lyrics of the song “crossing the peak”, which was popular during the first World Cup. In the 90’s, when the Chinese women’s football team was the most prosperous in the last century, crossing the peak was the most representative song of the women’s football team’s spiritual complex and the most popular song. Its popularity was no less than that of the later song “Rainbow of ups and downs, beautiful and energetic policewoman.
With the advent of the first women’s football World Cup (sometimes called “Women’s World Championship”, and later FIFA changed its name to “Women’s World Cup”) in China, the Chinese women’s football team and the World Cup formed an indissoluble bond. In 1991, Guangdong province, the frontier of reform and opening up, hosted this competition. There were only 12 participating teams in the start-up World Cup, and the Chinese team in Group A achieved two wins and one draw in the group match. Among them, the opening match swept the Norwegian team in the current runner-up 4:0, it shows great strength.
Unfortunately, in the quarter-finals, the Chinese team was secretly attacked by Sweden only 3 minutes after the start of the match. The whole attack was fruitless and defeated by 0:1, ranking fifth. Fortunately, young players such as Liu Ailing, Sun Wen and Wen Lirong, who were later known as the “golden generation”, began to emerge at that time and got experience in the first World Cup.
The distance from the champion is one step away
in the second Swedish women’s football World Cup in 1995, the Chinese team went further, the “golden generation” first saw its prototype, and the “beautiful and energetic policewoman” gradually blossomed. They encountered the defending champion US team in the first battle. Under the unfavorable situation of falling behind 1:3, they even pulled two balls to beat their opponents, which made the world look at each other.
Then, the Chinese team defeated the Australian team and the Danish team respectively, ranking second in the group to advance to the top eight by the difference of winning the ball. The quarter-finals were a replica four years ago. The Chinese team challenged the host Sweden. The Chinese team, which led most of the games, was equalized by the opponent penalty kick before the end of the game, but then in the penalty kick war, the Chinese team won the final four in a thrilling way. Although it was killed by the German team in the semi-final and finally ranked fourth, it was still very encouraging.
The 1999 American World Cup is an unforgettable memory for all Chinese women’s football fans. Here, the Chinese women’s football team has reached the most brilliant peak. In the face of all roads, they are invincible all the way. In the group match, the old rival Sweden was reversed at 2:1, and then the Ghana team was swept at 7:0, creating the record of the biggest score victory and the biggest score victory of the Chinese women’s football team in the world competition.
After defeating Australia at 3:1, the Chinese team advanced to the elimination match with a total victory in three battles. In the quarter-finals, the Russian team was taken at 2:0. In the semi-final, the Chinese team swept the defending champion Norway at 5:0, creating the biggest difference in the history of the semi-finals of the Women’s World Cup.
The finals went to war between China and the United States. Both sides played 0:0 in regular time and overtime. The Chinese team lost 4:5 in the penalty kick war and missed the champion. This is the latest time for Chinese women’s football team to be the champion, which has been widely appreciated and sought after by the society. Sun Wen, the core player, won the top scorer of the competition with 7 goals.
Ups and downs, eager to cast glory again
with the retirement and aging of the “golden generation”, the strength of Chinese women’s football team has declined, and it is difficult to make breakthroughs and amazing moves in recent ten years. In the 2003 World Cup group match, although the Chinese team won the first place in the group with a record of two wins and one draw, the attack power of the uniform ball can no longer be compared with that of four years ago. Facing the Canadian team in the quarter-finals, the Chinese team lost the ball in the seventh minute of the opening, and finally failed to return to the sky. After the game, Sun Wen announced his retirement, marking the winter of “beautiful and energetic policewoman.
In 2007, after 16 years, the women’s football World Cup “returned home”, but did not bring surprises to the Chinese team. After winning Denmark at 3:2 in the first battle, the Chinese team defeated Brazil at 0:4, defeated New Zealand at 2:0, and advanced as the second in the group. Facing the old rival Norway in the quarter-finals, despite his best efforts, he still couldn’t escape from fate. He was blocked outside the gate of the top four with a defeat of 0:1.
The 2011 World Cup in Germany was the “dark year” of Chinese women’s football team, and they missed the competition for the first time. The Chinese team lost to North Korea and Japan in the Asian competition. In that year, the Japanese team Lianke Germany, Sweden, the United States and other world teams became the first Asian team to win the World Cup championship. The rise of neighbors is both crisis and enlightenment.
At the 2015 World Cup in Canada, the Chinese team met the host immediately after the first battle, starting with a loss of 0:1. In the second battle, 1:0 beat Holland, and then 2:2 Draw New Zealand, leading the second place in the group. In the first round of the elimination match, 1:0 defeated Cameroon to advance to the top eight. In the quarter-finals, 0:1 failed to be the champion of the United States and failed to win the top four again.
The World Cup is about to start. Although the Chinese team has star players like Wang Frost, there is still a gap between the overall paper strength and the world’s top teams, but they are always coming with the champion’s heart, come with a desire for victory.