Cao Jing holds a portrait of her late mother as she watches sister Cao Lei compete in the weightlifting competition August 15 2008. [China Daily]

QINGHUANGDAO, Hebei: Women's 75 kg weightlifting champion Cao Lei cried when she was awarded her gold medal, but for the 25-year-old whose mother died two months ago, these were tears of joy and sorrow.

After witnessing his daughter's victory, her father Cao Guochen visited Liu Guirong

"We wanted to tell her mother this good news," 52-year-old Cao Guochen told China Daily.

Cao Lei of China prepares to lift in the women's 75 kg weightlifting event during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games at the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Gymnasium in Beijing on August 15, 2008. [Agencies]

"She is our daughter, but more importantly she belongs to sports and should have her own career," he said.

Cao Lei's mother passed away on June 22 and the family tried to keep the news from the 25-year-old Olympic champion.

Her mother, who had suffered from kidney disease for the past 14 years, was always the first person that Cao Lei wanted to talk with when she called home from training camps in Heilongjiang province and Beijing.

At the beginning, Cao Guochen had to lie to his daughter.

"When I last called Cao Lei, I just told her that she should not call us anymore and just communicate with her sister through mobile messages, so that we would not disturb her training," he said.

Later, Cao Lei's coach Ma Wenhui said they should tell the news to Cao Lei.

After she heard the news, Cao Lei cried for hours but concentrated more on her training, Ma said.

Cao Guochen, who used to be a weightlifter in Shenyang, started to train the daughter when she was just 9 years old.

"She is my lifelong pride and I believed at that time that she could be a world champion," he said.

When she was sent to a local sports school, her father accompanied her to the school every day.

On one rainy day, Cao Guochen was driving a motorbike, while his daughter was running after him.

"Many people accused me of being a mean father, but what I did was actually to strengthen her will," Cao said.

Friday, Cao Jing said she would also encourage her son Xiaoyang to start weightlifting.

"I want to do weightlifting or swimming," the 4-year-old boy said.