China wins first cycling Olympic gold, owes glory to French coach

Chinese cycling team members at a pre-event training in Rio de Janeiro, Aug 4, 2016.[Photo by Wei Xiaohao/China Daily]

Gong and Zhong's achievement is inseparable from their French coach Benoit Vetu's training.

"I moved my family to China for this job. It's to achieve this dream that I have stayed in the cycling training base. It was a hard decision, but it worth it. I have no regrets now," Vetu told chinadaily.com.cn.

Under Benoit Vetu's coaching, Gong and Zhong won in their debut at the Incheon Asian Games after teaming up in 2014. And at the 2015 UCI World Track Cycling Championships, they won the gold by breaking the world record.

As they improved continually in their races, their trust into Vetu also increased. "We trust each other, and there are no problems in our cooperation. We admire him, and he feels the same way about us. He understands us, is familiar with our emotions and when to encourage us," Gong told chinadaily.com.cn about their coach after the race.