Be the best of yourself

At the Shanghai 18th City Games and Tianjin 16th City Games, three Guanghua Academy (GHA) students stepped onto the competition stage and delivered performances that reflected not only their athletic ability, but also the discipline, resilience, and determination built through years of training.

Held once every four years, the City Games bring together some of the strongest young athletes from across the region. For student-athletes, competing at this level is an opportunity to test themselves against highly experienced peers—and to see how far years of preparation can take them.

This year, GHA students made their mark in fencing and swimming.

At the 18th Shanghai City Games, Grade 8 student Liu Sa won first place in the Boys' B Division team épée event, while Grade 10 student Lin Yuyang earned third place in the Girls' A Division team sabre event.

At the 16th Tianjin City Games, Grade 10 student Ni Boxin won bronze in the men's 100-meter freestyle (long course) with a personal-best time of 53.12 seconds, finishing just 1.6 seconds short of the national-level sports master standard. He also placed fourth in the 50-meter butterfly final with a time of 26.65 seconds, meeting the standard for National Level 1 Athlete in both events.

Behind every result was a different story of pressure, setbacks, teamwork, and persistence.

Fencing: Trusting the Team, One Point at a Time

For Liu Sa, the team épée title was hard-earned.

His team started strongly, taking a convincing win in the opening round. In the second round, however, Liu faced an opponent he had previously defeated and became slightly overconfident. His opening bout did not go as planned.

“I felt like I had let my teammates down,” he recalled. “They had worked so hard to earn those points, and I almost gave them away.”

His teammates held their ground and gradually closed the gap. His coach gave him a simple reminder: “Don’t overthink it. Take it one point at a time.”

Liu settled down, focused on each touch, and eventually turned the match around in the decisive bout.

The semifinal presented an even greater challenge. Facing a strong opponent, the team entered the match without any guarantee of victory. With a clear tactical plan, they committed fully, secured the key points, and advanced to the final.

The final was more controlled. The team stayed composed, built their lead steadily, and ultimately brought home the championship.

As one of four members of the épée team, Liu came away with a deeper understanding of the difference between individual and team competition.

“In an individual event, you are competing against yourself, and you control the pace. In a team event, your teammates are behind you. If you lose points, they can help make them back. You are not fighting alone.”

Liu had already won the individual title at the first stop of the National Club League last year. But this team championship meant something different.

Since beginning to compete regularly in 2023, he and his teammates have worked toward increasingly demanding competitions. Preparing for a major event held only once every four years required a sustained commitment from the entire team.

This championship became a meaningful reward for that long-term effort.

His next goal is already clear: to earn the National Level 1 Athlete designation.

Lin Yuyang: Finding Strength in Two Sports

In the team sabre competition, Lin Yuyang faced opponents with similarly strong competitive backgrounds. Rather than being distracted by the level of competition, she stayed composed and maintained her own rhythm.

Her speed became one of her greatest advantages. She consistently created separation on the scoreboard, giving her team captain valuable room to maneuver in the final bout.

In the closing stage, the captain faced the opponent's strongest fencer and encountered a difficult tactical matchup. But the lead built earlier in the match proved decisive, allowing the team to hold on for the win.

Lin has competed in sabre events ranging from B-level competitions to larger regional tournaments and has achieved strong finishes along the way. At the same time, she is candid about the challenge of balancing academics and training.

With limited training time, she typically fences only once a week.

“There is still a gap between me and athletes who train professionally,” she said.

But fencing is only one part of her athletic journey.

Throughout the summer, Lin continued her rowing training as well, maintaining an intensive schedule across both sports. Rowing has tested her physical and mental endurance in a different way.

“When you feel like you can't keep going, you still have to push through.”

She was actually brought into the fencing competition unexpectedly, with her coach pulling her away from rowing training to compete. Even she was surprised by how well she performed.

Fencing demands tactical precision. Rowing demands sustained mental toughness.

Moving between the two has given Lin a broader understanding of competition and helped her develop greater composure under pressure.

Her next challenge is to continue finding the right balance between academics and athletics—and to keep moving toward higher goals, one step at a time.

Swimming: Turning Disappointment into Momentum

For Ni Boxin, the competition began with nerves.

His events were scheduled for the second day. The night before, he woke almost every hour, struggling to sleep because of the pressure.

“I was already nervous before the first race. I wasn't sure how I would perform.”

After the morning preliminary, he sensed that his evening performance might not be at its best.

His instincts proved right. In the 50-meter freestyle final, he finished fourth—just 0.01 seconds behind the bronze medalist.

His race strategy had not gone according to plan. He had rushed the race.

“I was both frustrated and disappointed. We touched the wall almost at the same time, but I was still behind by that tiny margin.”

By that evening, however, he had begun to accept the result.

“A loss is a loss. I just need to figure out what went wrong and fix it next time.”

The disappointment did not disappear overnight, but it became fuel.

The following day, Ni struggled through the 100-meter freestyle preliminaries and entered the final with few expectations.

Then, standing on the starting block, something changed.

His hands and feet began to tingle and twitch slightly.

“I knew then that my condition had come back.”

He deliberately avoided thinking too much about the outcome, focusing instead on maintaining his rhythm.

In the final five meters, he pushed through the fatigue and held his pace to the wall.

When he saw the time, the tension finally gave way to relief—and a sense of happiness he had not felt for some time.

After the 100-meter freestyle, an old back injury flared up. Yet the next day, Ni still made the 50-meter butterfly final, finishing in 26.65 seconds.

By the end of the competition, he had met the National Level 1 Athlete standard in both events.

Ni first began swimming at the age of four and a half and won his first city-level championship at seven.

In early 2023, he joined the Tianjin team. Competing against some of the strongest swimmers of his age, he initially struggled with the pace of professional training. He spent the following year learning to handle the workload and refusing to give up.

In 2024, he lost the 50-meter freestyle by just 0.03 seconds. That evening, he returned home and added an extra training session. At the next competition, he emerged as a surprise champion.

He later traveled to the United States for training, completed high-altitude training camps, and finished third at the Tianjin City Championships.

A tendon injury in the second half of last year forced him to take more than six months away from full training. He gradually returned to competition in April and May this year.

The City Games take place only once every four years.

“This is probably the last one for our generation.”

His performance offered a powerful reminder: the strength built through setbacks eventually shows itself when the moment arrives.

Congratulations to Liu Sa, Lin Yuyang, and Ni Boxin on their outstanding performances at the City Games.

With a fencing sword in hand, they faced opponents without backing down. In the pool, they pushed through the water against both pressure and fatigue.

Their experiences were different, but the lesson was the same:

True victory is not defined only by the color of a medal. It is also found in the composure to face setbacks, the discipline to keep working, and the determination not to step back when the challenge becomes difficult.

At GHA, we believe athletic development is part of a student's broader journey of growth. Competition teaches students to manage pressure, work with others, respond to failure, and keep moving forward.

For these three student-athletes, the City Games were not simply another competition.

They were another milestone on a much longer journey.

And the next challenge is already ahead.