Illustration: Chen Xia/Global Times

As the hashtag "Radiant post-2000s have started to take responsibility" gains traction on Chinese social media, young Chinese athletes are making youthful waves in Paris. On the global stage of the Olympics, these athletes embody the spirit of the games with their exceptional performances, breaking records and achieving miracles through their determination and perseverance. They pay tribute to the Olympic motto of "Faster, Higher, Stronger, Together" with their best competitive state, setting records and making miracles with a spirit of daring to fight, never giving up, and striving for national glory. Not only are they showcasing their competitive prowess, they are also promoting unity and friendship with athletes from around the world. Whether it's through their sharp or lively responses to media inquiries or their heartwarming interactions with competitors of various countries, these young athletes are presenting China's confident and open image with a "radiant" image.

The outstanding performances of a big team of athletes born in the 1990s and 2000s are undoubtedly making the Chinese delegation a prominent presence at the Paris Olympics this year. The average age of the 405 Team China athletes in this Olympics is just 25, with 11-year-old skateboarder Zheng Haohao as the youngest athlete at this Olympics. These young athletes, called "Brother kid" or "Sister kid" by netizens, have lived up to the expectations, from the first gold medalist Huang Yuting, to the record-breaking Pan Zhanle. The young Chinese athletes have shown their strength at this Olympics, with 10 of the first 13 gold medals won by the "post-2000s." In addition to leaving a mark in terms of results, they are also infusing the competition with their unique style and characteristics.

China's young athletes are more confident, leaving a strong impression on some foreign media staff who have been paying attention to China for a long time. These young athletes are undoubtedly powerful shapers of this impression. Domestic audiences also praise the "post-2000" athletes for being "unyielding and resilient," and are moved and inspired by their sporting spirit and inspirational stories. Some joke that watching them compete requires a strong heart, as they often fall behind by large margins before turning the tables with their fighting spirit. Zheng Qinwen staged a comeback against world number one Iga Swiatek and Fan Zhendong's semi-final victory after a tough start are just two examples. These breath-taking moments showcase the competitive spirit, mental toughness, and strong will of these athletes.

In the arena of competitive sports, aspiring for gold and chasing victory is natural and expected, but from these young athletes, we also see many valuable qualities that transcend gold medals and result. These young Chinese athletes increasingly manage to combine the courage to fight hard with the enjoyment of the competition and the process. "Winning glory for the country" is the phrase these young athletes say most often before and after competitions, and the waving of national flags in the stands has become a source of spiritual strength for these athletes during their arduous battles. Of course, this Olympics has seen some of our athletes being put under considerable pressure due to inaccurate foreign media reports and political manipulation by a few countries. Even so, our young athletes have demonstrated with nearly perfect performances what it means to let their strength and adherence to rules speak for themselves, embodying the spirit of fair competition in sports.

On the Olympic stage, we have also seen young athletes' multidimensional understanding and practice of the Olympic spirit and competitive sports. Although Zhang Yufei didn't win a gold medal, she proved that Chinese athletes are not flashes in the pan. Yang Siqi, 15, the first Chinese athlete to compete in Olympic surfing, expressed her desire to "show the vitality and confidence of Chinese youth on the broader ocean." The Chinese women's rugby team exclaimed, "We made it to the top six!" All this demonstrated the charm of the Olympics that goes beyond winning and losing. Some young athletes see the Olympics as a stage for promoting their niche sports, while others see it as a platform for exploring the world. These attempts are continually deepening the connection between China and the Olympics, and between the Olympic spirit and ordinary people.

From the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics to the 2024 Paris Olympics, from the "post-1950s" to the "post-2000s" generation, Chinese athletes have consistently built upon and passed down their legacies at the Olympics. Time and again, their resilient performances have proven that "the younger generation truly has immense potential." These young athletes carry on the fine traditions of Chinese sports on the Olympic stage, while also showcasing a new image of confidence, vitality, and openness in contemporary Chinese sports. They are confident yet ambitious, patriotic yet global-minded, eager for success yet accepting of failure. In fact, these confident and open young Chinese athletes are a natural reflection of the confident and open Chinese sports community and the entire country, as well as a manifestation of the deep integration of China and the Olympic spirit.