Talk about the little-known thing behind the Olympic Games: most foreign athletes are amateurs.

It is not easy to train a world-class athlete in any country. In addition to the athletes' own intensive training, they also need financial support. However, in the past Tokyo Olympic Games, there were many "amateur athletes":

1. Anna, the gold medalist in cycling, is an Austrian mathematician;

2. whitlock, the gold medal winner of men's pommel horse, is a fashion designer;

3. Scott, the gold medal winner of sailing competition, is a professor of geophysics in a British university;

4. Woxington, the gold medal winner of the women's extreme cycling race, is a chef;

5. Suresa Lee, the all-around gold medalist in women's gymnastics, is an American high school student.

6. Tom Dean, the gold medal winner of men's 200m freestyle, is a British college student.

Compared with a large number of professional athletes in China, many foreign athletes participating in the Olympic Games are just their "sideline". Look at their jobs, some are students, some are teachers, some are doctors, some are cooks, some are hairdressers, and some are lawyers ... They have their own main business, and they don't take sports as a means of livelihood, but only take sports as a hobby.

A mathematician on a bicycle.

Among road cyclists, Anna Kiesenhofer, an Austrian athlete of this Tokyo Olympic Games, is the best in mathematics and the most fierce among road cyclists with a doctorate in mathematics. Carrying a backpack, she came to the Tokyo Olympics alone and finally won the gold medal.

Anna Kisenhoff is a mathematician. Her main business is to be a postdoctoral researcher in mathematics at the Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne. Her research direction is mainly nonlinear partial differential equations. Postdoctoral students are usually temporary, without good academic performance, and may be expelled at any time. Even under such heavy pressure, Anna Kisenhoff practiced riding a bike while doing academic work. She said: This is her childhood dream.

Many cyclists have a team, and the team will prepare everything for the athletes, but Anna Kisenhoff, as a non-professional athlete, has to rely on herself. "As a mathematician, you are always used to solving problems by yourself, so I do everything about bicycles myself." That's what she said

As a master with a master's degree in mathematics from Cambridge University and a doctor's degree in applied mathematics from Catalonia University of Technology in Barcelona, Anna Kisenhoff relies on her strong mathematical skills to complete the work that should have been done by data engineers and coaches alone. It is said that the reason why she won the championship is amazing, because the weather in Tokyo Olympic Games is hot, and the women's road race has a 60-kilometer uphill track with an average slope of 3%. One month before the opening of the Olympic Games, she studied the temperature in Tokyo, made a thermal adaptation table, and analyzed the functional response of the body when the temperature exceeded 38.5, so as to carefully plan her training, nutrition and tactics.

She turned mathematics into a competition guide in her mind, knowing when to follow, when to exert herself, and how to save her strength. In the end, she took the lead in completing a perfect race in 3 hours, 52 minutes and 45 seconds and won the Olympic gold medal in the women's road race.

Harvard scholar who won bronze medal in track and field

Gabby Thomas, a 24-year-old American, won the bronze medal in the 200-meter track and field competition at the Tokyo Olympics. She is a Harvard scholar and currently works in a medical technology and health company in the United States, doing public health research.

Thomas's family has a good educational background. His mother completed her doctorate at Emory University and later taught at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. They attach importance to their children's studies and sports. Gabe Thomas participated in the football team, softball team and basketball team when he was a child. On the court, Thomas has an outstanding skill-speed. After running 100 meters in a race, she looked at her report card and couldn't find her score. The reason is that one of the judges thinks she didn't take part in the competition. In fact, she has crossed the finish line.

When Thomas applied for university, the focus was on her studies and career. She hopes to become an excellent athlete while achieving excellent results. Finally, she chose Harvard University to study for a bachelor's degree in science, and she began to study neurobiology, which is applicable to many industries, including track and field. However, it is a challenge for her to strike a balance between rigorous academics and a busy training schedule. Thomas overcame the challenges in the university with perseverance. Not only did she perform well in her studies, but she also continued her glory on the field, and even added long-distance running and triple jump for herself.

It is said that Thomas became a professional athlete on 20 18, but compared with other professional athletes, she seems to be less "competent". She didn't put all her energy into sports, but studied and trained as usual, and then completed the master's course.

Before attending the Olympic Games, she worked in a laboratory of Boston Children's Hospital, studying Ryder's syndrome. After the Olympic Games, Thomas plans to devote himself to the medical and health field.

The 200-meter track and field athletes are actually supermarket employees.

Riley Day, a young girl from Australia, set her own personal best record at the age of 2 1 in the 200-meter track and field competition. She is also an amateur athlete.

She is an employee of Woolworth. She has worked in this supermarket since 18 years old. Life is simply training, working and going home.

As a non-professional athlete, all the training expenses should be borne by yourself. From 18 years old to 2 1 year old, she has been training by part-time income, and the training conditions are more difficult than anyone else. It took her three years to get onto the Olympic stage.

She entered the women's track and field 200-meter final and realized her dream of participating in the Olympic Games. After the game, she immediately thanked Woolworth. During the Olympic Games, Woolworth not only kept his post, but also paid his salary. Now that the Olympic Games are over, she still chooses to return to Woolworth to prepare for her next Olympic Games.

A teacher who plays table tennis

At this year's Tokyo Olympic Games, David Powell, a table tennis player from Australia, worked in Haileybury, Melbourne's top private school, and was an eighth-grade math teacher.

David Powell has parents who love playing table tennis. At the age of 8, I began to contact table tennis under the influence of my parents. Previously, he trained in a club in Melbourne, where there were only four or five athletes. In the end, instead of becoming a professional player, he turned table tennis into his lifelong hobby. It is very difficult for non-professional athletes to improve the level of table tennis. "There are very few domestic competitions. If you want to go to Europe, it will take more than 30 hours by plane, which is too far. " David Powell said.

Usually give children math lessons and train table tennis after work. He spends only six or seven hours a week on table tennis, but his level has ranked second in the country. He has participated in two Olympic Games. After learning that David Powell will represent Australia in the Tokyo Olympics, the official account of the school sent him a Facebook blessing.

David Powell said that Australia's top table tennis player is also an amateur. He sometimes misses some games because he is a lawyer and is busy making money.

Overseas, sports are an indispensable daily life. Parents and schools attach great importance to children's outdoor activities, and physical education class, various sports clubs and competitions in schools have become an important part of education.

Teenagers skateboarding can be seen everywhere in the street. The football, basketball and rugby matches on the court are full of blood. Lakes and seas have become natural sports venues for water sports enthusiasts ... sports have penetrated into everyone's cells. In America, Australia, Europe, etc. Everyone can be said to be an athlete in sports, national sports and daily sports. So it is not surprising that we see these amateur athletes galloping in the Olympic Games and getting good results. Let sports integrate into life, maybe this is the Olympic spirit!