A beautiful mixed-race high school girl gave up her American citizenship and won a gold medal and became a world champion at the age of 16 just to enter China. Who is she?

01. Naturalizing as a Chinese citizen seems “natural”

In 2003, Gu Ailing was born in San Francisco, USA. Her father is an authentic American who graduated from Harvard University, and her mother also He is from the same family. He graduated from Peking University and Stanford University. He is an out-and-out Chinese.

It is no exaggeration to say that Gu Ailing’s family background is among the elite in the United States, so there is no shortage of money at all.

Then why did she, who came from such a wealthy family, not enjoy the upper-class life in the United States, but also gave up her American citizenship and chose to join China?

“I am not a doll, I am a Beijing girl.”

When it comes to the story of Gu Ailing’s naturalization in China, we have to start with her mother Gu Yan. Gu Yan is originally from Beijing and immigrated to the United States after marrying her husband.

When Gu Ailing was born in 2003, Gu Yan never stopped educating her about traditional Chinese culture.

Since Ailing can remember, her mother Gu Yan has taught her Tang poetry and Song lyrics, memorized multiplication tables, eaten Chinese food at family dinners, celebrated traditional Chinese festivals in Chinatown, and even asked her to communicate with her mother in Chinese. , Gu Yan also kept telling Gu Ailing:

"Half of your body is flowing with Chinese blood."

When she was a little older, Gu Yan often Taking advantage of the summer vacation, she took Gu Ailing back to Beijing to live for a while, go to the Forbidden City to check in, and eat the candied haws of old Beijing, the mutton skewers from Xinjiang, the hot pot from Sichuan...

Gu Yan followed the spirit It has fully integrated Chinese culture into Gu Ailing's blood.

So much so that when Gu Ailing saw the words on Tiananmen Gate for the first time, she could read them out fluently in Beijing movies, and curiously asked her friends: "I have never taken a Chinese class. But do we still need to learn Chinese?”

It is precisely because of years of subtle influence that Gu Ailing, who was born in the United States, is more Chinese than some Chinese people, at least in terms of cultural identity, than some people who have received green cards. "Banana Man" is so much better.

"Every time someone says I am a doll, I will correct them. I am not a doll. I am a Chinese just like you." Gu Ailing said in an interview with the media.

Being able to endure hardships and save face, in short, many of the qualities of Chinese people can be found in Gu Ailing.

How many people have longed for American citizenship, but Gu Ailing, who had everything since she was born, can give up gracefully, join China, and fight for the culture she believes in, which is worthy of admiration!

However, as we all know, Chinese nationality is notoriously difficult to obtain around the world, and Gu Ailing’s mother has already been naturalized in the United States, which does not meet the requirements of Article 4 and Article 5 of the Nationality Law. Naturalization regulations for Chinese citizens.

Therefore, the shortcut for Gu Ailing to become a Chinese citizen has been blocked. If you want to join China, there is only one way to go: that is, you need to make special contributions to China.

02. Strict self-discipline, genius development plan

In 2019, 16-year-old Gu Ailing won the 50th freestyle skiing gold medal in her life, becoming the best in her career. An important milestone.

Won numerous medals at such a young age, how did Gu Ailing do it?

Gu Ailing’s mother, Gu Yan, was a ski instructor as early as in Beijing. Influenced by her mother, Gu Ailing came into contact with ski resorts at the age of 3.

The white snow reflected the light of hope under the sunlight. The moment he stepped on his skis, Gu Ailing felt that he had an indissoluble bond with this place. Because she soon showed her genius at a young age.

Just one year later, 4-year-old Gu Ailing was able to skillfully shuttle through the woods with her mother.

When she got a little older, Gu Ailing was tired of basic skiing moves, and she began to pursue a more difficult challenge: fancy skiing.

In 2011, 8-year-old Gu Ailing began to formally learn freestyle skiing and joined the professional ski team in the Lake Tahoe area, becoming the only girl in the team.

Another year later, Gu Ailing won the U.S. Junior Freestyle Skiing Championship. This was the first championship in her life and the beginning of her brilliant career.

I officially participated in the adult competition at the age of 12. In 4 years, I won a total of 50 gold medals in various competitions, large and small.

At the Winter Youth Olympics in Lausanne, Switzerland, in January this year, Gu Ailing participated in three competitions: freestyle U-shaped skiing, freestyle skiing platform, and freestyle skiing slope obstacle skills. A brilliant result of two golds and one silver.

How many professional athletes have dreamed of winning the championship, but Gu Ailing simply got it softly. The most important thing is that he is only 17 years old this year. At such a beautiful age, his future future is limitless.

But if you think this is the result of Gu Ailing’s hard training every day, you are totally wrong.

"I'm very happy to win the gold medal in the freestyle skiing U-shaped track competition at the 2020 Lausanne Winter Youth Olympic Games today. I won't say more, I have to go back and continue my homework." On January 20, Gu Ailing posted on social media Posting on the blog, I didn't have time to celebrate because I had to go back to catch up on my homework...

Yes, because Gu Ailing is only 17 years old, she is still a high school student after all. Because of his status as a student, Gu Ailing only trains two days a week, Saturday and Sunday, while professional athletes train five to seven days a week.

This means that Gu Ailing achieved such impressive results with only one-third of the training volume of other athletes. More importantly, she also studied and exercised well, as if He is a top student.

As early as when she was in elementary school, Gu Ailing’s grades have always been among the best. Now in order to prepare for the 2022 Winter Olympics, Gu Ailing is preparing to spend one year completing two years of high school courses, hoping to free up more time. More time to train.

“Ai Ling’s strong self-management makes me and her father feel ashamed,” Gu Yan, who was born in the Ivy League, said when talking about her daughter in front of the media.

At home, Gu Ailing is very good at formulating a study plan and work and rest time for herself, and strictly follows the plan.

For example, when it comes to skiing training, she doesn’t need her family’s intervention at all: she has a clear timetable for when to train, when to rest, and what goals to accomplish.

It is precisely because of this serious attitude towards life that Gu Ailing appears in people's eyes and always has free time to do more things than ordinary people.

03. Hobbies are the best teachers

“I like skiing. Besides eating and sleeping, skiing is the most important thing.” For Gu Ailing, skiing The path of becoming an athlete is purely out of interest.

As the saying goes, interest is the best teacher. Unlike many professional athletes who regard sports as a means of making a living, Gu Ailing appears to be very active in ski training.

In the United States, Gu Ailing often sees some lazy athletes on the ski resort, but she doesn't do it, because Gu Ailing enjoys the process of skiing, and this sport brings her the greatest happiness in life.

Gu Ailing’s success in low-intensity training is due to her high concentration driven by interest.

“I will make full use of every minute on the snow field to practice seriously and study the movements.” Because of my love, I even reached the stage where I forgot to eat and sleep and became obsessed with it.

At home, Gu Yan often uses the idea of ??not letting Gu Ailing go skiing as a "blackmail" and "forces" her to do some housework such as washing dishes and sweeping the floor, which is very similar to the past when she worked at home to earn pocket money. Of us, but obviously, Gu Ailing’s level is higher than ours.

For Gu Ailing, skiing is her most important interest, but it is not the only one. In fact, Gu Ailing's interests are extremely broad.

With the support and training of her mother, Gu Ailing is also good at equestrian, track and field, basketball and other sports, and even has experience in adventures such as surfing and rock climbing.

In today’s terms, she is a standard “vital girl”.

Of course, Gu Ailing also paid a heavy price for these interests. He once broke his collarbone and even broke his ankle. However, these did not stop Gu Ailing from moving forward.

In addition to sports, Gu Ailing has also developed in an all-round way in literature and art. She has published short stories in American newspapers, passed piano exams, and even appeared in model shows in fashion magazines. She has been what her parents call "other people's children" since she was a child.

But according to Gu Ailing’s own words: It is impossible to ski for a lifetime. After the age of thirty, these interests of hers will become the main means of livelihood.

Since the opening of the country in 1978, many Chinese have settled abroad by studying, working, etc., because there used to be material conditions that China could not match.

But as the country becomes increasingly prosperous, the older generation of Chinese have regained their confidence in our own nation, and more and more overseas tourists have begun to return to China, including outstanding people like Gu Ailing. second generation Chinese elite.

At present, China is in a golden age, and a rejuvenated Chinese nation will surely regroup and go global.