Yearender China sports: Harvest year for Chinese athletics

Chen's gold winning feat in London was just an epitome of Chinese race walkers' eye-catching performance in 2012. The 21-year-old Wang Zhen, who finished third in the men's 20km in London, collected China's first men's world title in the 2012 IAAF World Race Walking Cup in Saransk, Russia this May. And Si Tianfeng grabbed a bronze in the men's 50km event.

China's Qieyang Shenjie smiles as she finishes third in the women's 20km race walk final at the London 2012 Olympic Games at The Mall Aug 11, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

Qieyang Shenjie, the first Tibetan athlete that China has ever fielded in the Olympics, also won a bronze medal in the women's 20km event by setting a new Asian record.

"The bronze medal raised my confidence. I want to polish my technique and I believe I can renew my Asian record one day," said Qieyang, who now spends more time on Weibo, a Twitter-like social network in China, trying to promote her beloved sport.

"The London Olympics has made me known to more and more people and I have a lot more followers now," said the 22-year-old. "I like to share my training, my competitions and my life with my followers. Hopefully, more and more people can get to know and love the sport."

Apart from the walkers, China's female throwers also did quiet a good job in London. The 33-year-old Li Yanfeng, who claimed the world discus title in Daegu last year, picked up a bronze in London.

And Li's bronze medal may turn silver soon as Russia's s Olympic silver medalist, Darya Pishchalnikova, is set to be stripped of her medal and banned for life following confirmation by the Russian anti-doping agency that she has tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug.

The 23-year-old shot putter Gong Lijiao, who initially finished fourth at London Olympic Games, recently received her deserved bronze medal after Belarus' Nadzeya Ostapchuk was stripped of the Olympic gold medal for testing positive for a banned anabolic steroid.

The honor achieved by Chinese track and field athletes was not just limited within the arena. Chinese legend distance runner Wang Junxia, who won the women's 5,000m gold medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, was among the first induction of the 24 members in the IAAF Hall of Fame on Nov 24.  The members also include legendary names such as Sergey Bubka, Sebastian Coe, Carl Lewis and Jesse Owens and she is the only Asian athlete among the 24 first inductees.

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