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China's Zhang Lin reacts after he finished fourth in the men's 200m freestyle at the 16th Asian Games in Guangzhou, Nov 14, 2010. [Photo/Xinhua] |
Although he won a relay gold medal and two bronze at the Asian Games, China's world champion swimmer Zhang Lin under-performed in the Guangzhou pool.
Considered one of China's most recent sports icons, Zhang failed to fulfill the high expectation piled upon him before the games, at which he finished fourth in the men's 200m freestyle and claimed bronze medals in the 400m and 1,500m races.
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However, the 23-year-old is taking the games disappointment in his stride.
"I admit that I failed this time. All athletes feel bad when they suffer failure, but if I want to emerge from the shadow of this, I have to face it positively," Zhang said. "I'm still looking at the problems with my coach right now. I believe I can come up with the solutions. Confidence in myself is the most important thing right now."
Before the Asian Games, Zhang was regarded as a major star of the Chinese team, along with hurdler Liu Xiang. He was also the first torchbearer of the Asian Games flame, receiving the torch from Chinese President Hu Jintao.
His poor performances in Guangzhou drew much criticism, but Zhang refused to say the spotlight put extra pressure on him.
"I didn't worry about the media reports before the games. Being the first torchbearer was an encouragement for me, and it didn't become a burden," he said.
"I still believe in myself. All the problems are temporary. I will try to find and solve them."
Zhang's coach will make adjustments to his technique before a period of training in the United States next year.
"We planned to train in the US in next January, but now we may postpone that," said Zhang's coach, Chen Yinghong. "He should make some adjustments before that.
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