Zhuang Xiaoyan (庄晓岩; born 4 May 1969) is a Chinese

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

coach, former international judo champion, and winner of the gold medal for judo in the women's +72 kg (heavyweight) division at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics (, ), officially the Games of the XXV Olympiad (, ) and officially branded as Barcelona '92, were an international multi-sport event held from 25 July to 9 August 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Beginning in 1994 ...

.Pellam, J. L. (Ed.) (1996): ''Who's who of the Asian Pacific rim, 1997–1998'' (p. 441). Laguna Beach, CA: Baron's Who's Who. ()Woolum, J. (1998): ''Outstanding women athletes: Who they are and how they influenced sports in America'' (p. 336). Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press. ()DatabaseOlympics.com: 1992 Summer Olympics – Barcelona, Spain – Judo
(1992). Retrieved on 15 July 2008.
(6 November 2003). Retrieved on 16 April 2010.
(''c.'' 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010.
(''c.'' 2000). Retrieved on 16 April 2010.
(29 July 2007). Retrieved on 16 April 2010. Her medal was

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

's first Olympic gold medal in judo.

Early life

Zhuang was born on 4 May 1969 in

Shenyang Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...

Liaoning ) , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = Clockwise: Mukden Palace in Shenyang, Xinghai Square in Dalian, Dalian coast, Yalu River at Dandong , image_map = Liaoning in China (+all claims hatched).svg , ...

, China. Her parents worked in a fertiliser plant.DataSports163: 庄晓岩
(''c.'' 2005). Retrieved on 16 April 2010. She initially trained in

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

, discus, and

javelin A javelin is a light spear designed primarily to be thrown, historically as a ranged weapon. Today, the javelin is predominantly used for sporting purposes such as the javelin throw. The javelin is nearly always thrown by hand, unlike the sling ...

, but changed to judo at the age of 14 years. A year later, she was selected for the Liaoning provincial judo team. Her nickname amongst her fellow athletes was 'Tiger.'Xinhuanet: 庄晓岩 · 中国第一位奥运柔道冠军
(16 April 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010.

Competitive judo career

In 1986, Zhuang joined the Chinese national judo team. That same year, she came second in the National Judo Championship. In 1987, she was champion in the women's open class at the National Games, and in 1988, she took victory in the same class at the International Judo Championships. Through the late 1980s, she also competed in tournaments at

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancient times. ...

.JudoInside: Zhuang Xiaoyan
(''c.'' 2002). Retrieved on 25 April 2010. Her coach for international competition was Liu Yongfu.Official Website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games: 'Father of Judo in China' preparing gold medal hopefully
(19 June 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010.Yan, H. (2008)

''Xinhuanet'' (15 August 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010. She was listed at in height and in weight. More international victories followed for Zhuang at the

1990 Asian Games ) , nations = 31 , athletes = 6,122 , events = 308 in 27 sports , opening = 22 September 1990 , closing = 7 October 1990 , opened_by = Yang Shangkun , closed_by = Roy de Silva , athlete_oath = Chen L ...

in Beijing and the

1991 World Judo Championships The 1991 World Judo Championships were the 17th edition of the World Judo Championships, and were held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territ ...

in Barcelona. At the

, Zhuang defeated Estela Rodríguez Villanueva from Cuba to win the gold medal in the women's +72 kg division for judo. This was China's first Olympic gold medal in judo, and was the first of three consecutive victories for China in this competition— Sun Fuming (

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

) and Yuan Hua (

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

) also won Olympic gold medals in the heaviest women's division in judo. Following her Olympic victory, Zhuang married and had twin daughters, but separated from her husband a few years later. She retired from judo competition in 1995.

Post-competition career

Zhuang was one of the torchbearers in the Olympic torch relay for the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

in Beijing.Official Website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games: Torch relay in Shenyang concludes
(17 July 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010.Zhang, R., & Li, Z. (2008)

''Xinhuanet'' (17 July 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010.
(18 July 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010. Her fingerprints and footprints are preserved in the flagstones of Beidaihe Olympic Avenue Park,

Beidaihe District Beidaihe District () is a popular beach resort and a district of the city of Qinhuangdao, Hebei province on China's Bohai Sea coast. It has an area of and, , a population of 130,104, as well as a coastline of . It is also known as a birding h ...

, along with those of 44 other Chinese Olympic champions.Wang, Y. (2008)
A Beidaihe native returns to the seaside resort after 20 years
(28 July 2008). Retrieved on 16 April 2010. She now trains judo competitors at the Liaoning provincial institute of sports technology.

References

External links

* *
China Daily: Zhuang Xiaoyan
contains a photograph of Zhuang (''c.'' 1992).

contains a photograph of Zhuang (''c.'' 2005). {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhuang, Xiaoyan Living people 1969 births Judoka at the 1992 Summer Olympics Judoka trainers Olympic gold medalists for China Olympic judoka for China Olympic medalists in judo Sportspeople from Shenyang Martial artists from Liaoning Asian Games gold medalists in judo Judoka at the 1990 Asian Games Chinese female judoka Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Asian Games gold medalists for China Medalists at the 1990 Asian Games

Early life

Competitive judo career

Post-competition career

See also

References

External links