Chapter 373: Chancing Upon a Gem
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Phillip's tone became much humbler, like a transfer student who had just joined a new school. He opened his mouth and began to introduce himself, "My main sport is the 100m sprint, though I occasionally practice the 200m sprint as well. Right now, my time for the 100m sprint is 13.35 seconds, and I hope that through training, it can be improved to within 13 seconds".
"Based on your T43 classification, if you can improve your time to within 13 seconds, you would have the chance to participate in international competitions," Dai Li stated.
Finishing 100 meters in 13 seconds was a result that wouldn't even make a person a grade three national athlete in China. Even middle school students could run faster than that. However, for a para-athlete, who had had both his feet amputated, finishing a 100m sprint within 13 seconds was enough to participate in para-athletics competitions at the international level. After all, the world record for the 100m sprint in the T43 class was only 12.20 seconds.
"First, I'll have to see how talented he is," Dai Li thought, as he started his examination on Phillip.
"100m, talent potential is A-, 200m, talent potential is A, 400m, talent potential is A+!" Dai Li drew in a breath of cold air in surprise, because the result was far greater than his expectation.
"Grade A talent potential, the talent required to become a world champion! A para-athlete with grade A talent potential, this is too unfortunate. He has so much potential in sprinting, yet he has no legs!" Dai Li thought sympathetically.
Most of the para-athletes, who had visited earlier, only had grade D talent potential, not even one had a grade C- talent potential. The way athletes were selected and trained was different in the U.S. than in China. In China, athletes were chosen from large groups of people, such as sports schools, city teams, provincial teams, and different levels of national team training.
After layers upon layers of selection, the ones who were ultimately chosen, were the best of the bunch and, more often than not, had excellent talent potential. The ones who were left out, would alter their plans and change their career paths as soon as possible, to not waste time. That was why most athletes in China had to have at least a decent amount of talent in sports.
In the U.S., however, athletes were required to pay for their own training. Coaches wouldn't care if you had talent or not. As long as they were paid, they would provide training services. That was why the U.S. lacked people with incredible talent, despite having so many people working in the sports industry. The actual number of people who were truly suited to work as athletes was amazingly small.
Meeting an athlete with Grade A sprint talent in the U.S. was something one could only wish for, and the man called Phillip, who was standing in front of him, was one with such talent. However, he had lost both of his feet.
Dai Li's gaze was filled with disappointment and sympathy. He was sure that, if Phillip was a normal, healthy individual, he could turn him into a world champion! Phillip, however, did not pay much heed to Dai Li's expression. He pulled out a pair of semi-curved black blades from his backpack.
"Is this a prosthesis for sport?" Dai Li asked, since he had recognized the item.
"The Flex-Foot Cheetah. It's the world's most advanced sports prosthesis available. It weighs around 8 pounds, the thickest area has 80 layers of carbon fiber, and the bottom of the prosthesis is equipped with the sole of a running shoe. I specifically went to a company specialized in creating prosthesis and mobility solutions in Iceland to have it custom-made. It cost me 250,000 Dollars. Half of what I got from the insurance company was spent on this prosthesis," Phillip said.
"So what caused you to lose both your feet?" Dai Li paused briefly, before continuing, "Please don't misunderstand, I don't mean to intrude on your privacy. I just need to assess your situation in detail, so that I can develop specific training programs later."
Phillip nodded and began describing his experience, "I've liked all types of sports since I was a kid. For example, football, basketball, tennis, boxing, and golf. I was even interested in motorbike racing. I wanted to a professional football player back then. I was a main player in the school football team, but after graduating high school, none of the colleges gave me a scholarship, and my family wasn't able to afford the school tuition, since it was just too expensive. So I didn't go to college, but went and joined the military instead. That was because I could apply for tuition subsidies after joining the military. With the subsidy, I would have enough to get into college after I retired."
"However, a year after joining the military, I was sent to Iraq. You know, in Iraq, we weren't welcomed by the locals. Even if we were in a supposed 'green area,' we'd still have to worry about getting hit by an incoming missile, and for me, it was bad luck. I stepped on a landmine during an operation. Fortunately though, it was a homemade landmine, not a professionally made anti-personnel landmine. If it was the latter, I'd have lost more than just both my legs, I'd probably have lost my life".
"After that, I returned to the U.S. and received the disability insurance from the insurance company. The government also gives me a monthly allowance for disabled military servicemen. I used the money I got from the disability insurance to purchase a set of normal prostheses, and began training to walk. I was naive back then, and I really thought that, if I could walk like a normal person, I would be able to live a normal life."
"But when I could walk like normal again, I still couldn't find any formal work. I didn't go to college, and a person who hasn't gone to college could only do physical labor. And as a person with a disability, I cannot engage in heavy physical labor. Even if I wanted to, employers wouldn't hire me. They are afraid that the labor unions and organizations that protect the rights of people with disabilities would accuse them of mistreating people with disabilities. They don't want trouble, which is why I can only do part-time jobs".
"I joined the army so that I could lead a better life, because I didn't want to end up at the bottom of society. But after losing both my legs and leaving the army, I found out that, in the end, I had still ended up at the bottom of society. I have no job, and I'm only getting by using the money I earn from part-time jobs and the money I receive from relief funds. I had thought that I would be living like that for the rest of my life, just getting by every day. That was until I met Jonny".
"Jonny was an army sergeant, who was my superior back when I had just arrived in Iraq. He suffered heavy burns from napalm, and the doctors used morphine on him during his treatment, which later made him addicted to drugs. Jonny also resorted to alcoholism. So when I met him, he had already become a homeless person, he was living in the streets, and he was using the allowance for disabled military servicemen that he'd received from the government to purchase liquor. He was living from the food given to him by charities every day. It was tough to imagine, the courageous warrior that once stood upon the battlefield had now become a drug addict and drunkard!"
"When I saw Jonny, it was like seeing my future. I started to become afraid. I was worried that I would become like Jonny, turning into a homeless drunkard. I felt that, no matter what, I should never lose my sense of self, and I knew that I had to do something meaningful. I decided to become an amateur athlete, so I traveled specifically to Iceland to have this Flex-Foot Cheetah prosthesis made."
"At first, I wanted to play football, I even joined a football club. However, the physical confrontation involved in the sport wasn't suited for people like me, who had lost both feet. My prosthesis was extremely durable, making it an accessory that caused injury easily, including injuring myself. During a match, I was hurt. I had twisted my knee, and when I was running during my rehabilitation, a coach at the club felt that I had talent in sprinting, so he suggested I try out track and field training. After that, I started attempting sprinting practice".
Dai Li nodded his head in silence, feeling sympathetic to Phillip's life encounters. If it wasn't for the war, perhaps Phillips could have completed his military service safely, received the tuition subsidy he mentioned, went on to college before graduating, and ultimately, have gotten a decent job.
After adjusting his riled up emotions, Dai Li said, "The difference between you and ordinary athletes is that both your legs and ankles are amputated, which means that you have no feet. The foot is the most important organ in the body, needed to bear burdens and provide support. Apart from that, the feet are also used to adjust the balance of the human body. In any case, I don't think that your prosthesis can truly replace your feet."
"And for a sprinter, you are missing another important organ, and that would be the Achilles tendon! For a sprinter, the explosive force arising from the stomping of the ground comes from the Achilles tendon, so without the Achilles tendon, your explosiveness would suffer a lot. If my guess is correct, you are slow off the mark. I'm not sure if this Flex-Foot Cheetah prosthesis of yours can provide you with an extra spring, but ultimately, it still isn't a part of your body. So, I am certain that, after you get off the mark, you would need to spend at least 20 to 30 meters to find your running rhythm."
"Next, let's talk about some other aspects. First of all, the calf. When you're walking, the force distribution of your calf is also different…"
"Then there's your thigh when you make a stride…"
"Your arm swing should be your primary balance mechanism, but…"
As Dai Li analyzed Phillip's shortcomings one by one, the expression on Phillip's face shifted gradually, first becoming serious, then surprised, and finally, impressed.
"Everything is as Coach Li said. He was able to deduce so many things from just seeing my prosthesis! It's no wonder that even Allen Hampton came to him for training."
At that point, Phillip no longer held any disdain towards Dai Li, and he no longer cared about all the presumed weaknesses the Chinese had in sports. He couldn't wait to get started in his training.
...
Phillips began his training, and soon discovered that Dai Li's training wasn't just about physical fitness. There were also techniques in sprinting, and the sprinting technique practices Dai Li used were no worse than a professional track and field coach's.
"My disciple was the champion of the 100m and 200m sprint in the Asian Games," Dai Li said in a slightly teasing tone.
Among the many world sports games held in various continents across the world, the track and field of the Asian Games should be of the lowest level. Compared to Europe and Africa, the value of the sprint champion of the Asian Games was obviously the lowest.
However, in a place like the U.S. where a person who had a skill could easily find a job, the more talented a person was, the more valuable he was. A coach with several achievements would have athletes flocking to them, and being the coach of an Asian Games sprint champion was certainly enough for a person to tout himself as a high-level coach.
"Coach Li is actually the coach of an Asian Games champion,so it looks like I've really hit the jackpot!" As this thought surfaced in Phillip's mind, he asked tentatively, "Coach Li, can you be my coach? What I mean is, not just physical fitness training, but also in sprinting."
"Sure, the only drawback is that I don't have a long enough track here," Dai Li thought for a moment before saying, "If you don't mind, there's an empty space outside the gym, where I could draw and create a temporary track."
"That would be great!" a look of excitement filled Phillip's face, but only for a moment, as in the next second, he suddenly remembered something.
"Coach Li, there's another problem, I'm currently still receiving relief funds, so I haven't got the money to pay you," Phillip said awkwardly.
"I am not planning to charge you anything!" Dai Li said with a smile.
Phillip however, shook his head and said, "Coach Li, how about I owe you first, and when I get a sponsor, I will definitely return the amount, and more, to you!"
...
After all, Phillip was one blessed with grade A sprinting talent potential, though he had lost both his feet, and as soon as the training began, his performance started to improve rapidly.
Two weeks later.
On the temporary track outside the gym, Dai Li stared blankly at the electronic timer he held in his hand.
"11.99 seconds, he has broken through the 12 seconds mark, did I remember wrongly?!" Dai Li mumbled to himself.
However, Dai Li knew that in Phillip's T43 classification, the world record for the 100m sprint was only 12.20 seconds, which meant that, after just two weeks of training, Phillip already had the ability to break the world record for the para-athletics' T43 classification.
"I had felt that I was making a loss when I provided free training to para-athletes, now it seems I've found myself a gem!" Dai Li thought happily.