Bureaus Exclusive

Playing soccer gives confidence in life

By Qiu Quanlin (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-12-20 17:39

GUANGZHOU – Playing soccer has helped give Lin Congchang, a CP7 player of Chinese 7-a-side national team, more confidence in life.

In return, the 25-year-old player stood out in the squad by scoring two goals at China's debut match 4-2 against the Republic of Korea at Asian Para Games, which concluded on Sunday in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province.

Lin Congchang [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

"Soccer is now more like one of my best friends. Moreover, it is so lucky that I have a girl friend after playing soccer," said Lin, who has now become optimistic and sociable in life.

"I have never dreamed of finding a girl friend before. I thought that my future would have totally collapsed after I realized that I am disabled," said Lin, without elaborating how he met his girlfriend.

Lin became half-hemiplegic after his head was seriously injured by a falling when he was at age of four. It was three years later that he could stand up and walk alone.

"My parents never give up their care and love to me. My father always accompanied me to school by carrying me on his back," said Lin, who now could run 100 meters within 13 seconds.

Like Lin, many players of cerebral palsy (CP), a group of disorders that affect a person's physical ability to move and maintain balance and posture, have retrieved confidence in life after playing soccer, Lin said.

"The confidence is very important for us. In the past, I felt very lonely. You know that some people have looked at us differently," he said.

Born into a rural family in Meizhou of Guangdong province, Lin developed interests in soccer after playing with his elder sister, who plays professional soccer at a local club, when he was a teenager.

But it was only in 2006 that Lin began professional training of soccer after quitting training as a disabled track athlete and a cyclist.

"My coach found that it was better for me to play soccer, which can help me recover more quickly," said Lin.

Lin soon proved to be an aggressive striker after he joined the Guangdong provincial team and helped the team win the title of the national CP soccer championship in July.

Lin said he came to Guangzhou to learn and surpass himself at the Asian Para Games given that Iran humbled China 8-0 in a preliminary match and 7-0 at the final.

"We are playing hard as what we have prepared for the games. For me, everything is improving. That’s the most important thing," he said.

After years of playing soccer, Lin has advanced from CP6 to CP7 – from being unable to remain still to having good functional abilities in the dominant side of the body.

CP athletes are usually classified with eight levels, with the level 1 to 4 referring to those who use a wheelchair during competition and the level 5 to 8 athletes who do not rely on any assistance facilities in competition.

A CP7 player can walk without assistance but often with a limp due to uncontrollable muscular spasms in the leg. While in running, the limp may disappear almost totally.

"We have tried our best in the competition. But you know it is not easy to have a good result due to short period of preparation," he said.

Unlike Iran, which has a CP soccer history of more than 30 years, China began developing CP soccer after 2000, according to China CP soccer head coach Yang Weixiang.

China also began an annual national CP soccer tournament in July this year after the national squad lost all of its CP matches at the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games.

After the Guangzhou Asian Para Games, Lin will return to his hometown to work as a social worker in providing assistance of rehabilitation to local disabled people.

"There should be more competitions like the national championships and Asian Para Games to develop China’s CP talent and help them recover greatly from playing," he said.

Like Lin, CP soccer players are temporarily called together to prepare for the annual national tournament since China does not have a CP soccer club system.

Lin will also take part in the next year's tournament. "But I want to play more. We want a regular training and competition season," he said.