Almighty Coach

According to the diagnosis of the team doctor, Haiquan Fang had not hurt his bone or joint. The worst case scenario would be a ligament strain; it could also just be a muscle strain. Therefore, Dai Li had volunteered to give a massage to Haiquan Fang. If Haiquan Fang’s injury had been very serious, Dai Li would not have had the guts to stand up.

Dai Li’s rehabilitative massage could not cure traumatic injuries, but it was very helpful for injury recovery. Regardless of if it was a ligament strain or a normal muscle strain, the rehabilitative massage would be effective. At the very least, it could alleviate Haiquan Fang’s pain. Together with the effect of low-temperature analgesic spray, Haiquan Fang should be able to handle a trial jump.

Li Xue also knew Dai Li’s massage was very effective. Before, Dai Li had given massage treatments to the athletes of the national team who had suffered from sprains. The alleviation effect of his treatments was very obvious.

"Dai Li, do we have enough time for the massage? What are the odds of recovery?" Li Xue couldn’t help asking.

"I’m uncertain about the odds, but I can at least give it a try." As Dai Li said this, he squatted beside Haiquan Fang and said to Li Xue, "Coach, please buy me as much time as you can."

Without any hesitation, Li Xue took out his cell phone and dialed a number.

"Director Chen, I am Li Xue of the Track and Field Team. We need your help for an urgent incident. We need some extra time before the long jump final. Yes, just postpone the game! We are the host, so it shouldn’t be very difficult to postpone the match for a bit, right?"

A moment later, Li Xue hung up and said to Dai Li, "The third trial jump has just finished. The appearing sequence of the athletes will be reset according to the results. I bought you fifteen minutes in this period, and that’s as much as you’re going to get; don’t expect more."

...

After three trial jumps, some were happy with the results, while others were sad. The happy ones were the top eight players, naturally, while the sad ones were the bottom four athletes, who had already been knocked out.

Three players of the national team had entered the top eight. Besides them, three players from the Saudi Arabian team had also entered the top eight. Therefore, the last three trial jumps would be a competition between the players from these two countries.

In the athletes’ preparation area, Sardo, a Saudi-Arabian player, was quite anxious.

"Why hasn’t the fourth trial jump started? They only need to reset the appearing sequence according to the results; why do they need such a long time?" Sardo complained.

The head coach of the Saudi-Arabian team besides him consoled him immediately, saying, "Sardo, take it easy. The game should start soon."

"I have been waiting for more than ten minutes! Now I am only second. I will surpass the guy in first place in the next three trial jumps. How could I be defeated by a nobody?"

As an immigrant athlete, Sardo’s ancestral home was in Morocco, Africa, which was a country dominated by Arabians. Because of an identical religion and culture, many middle-east countries recruited immigrant athletes from Morocco.

Sardo was one of the best immigrant athletes. In the last Asian Games, he had won a long jump gold medal for the Saudi-Arabian team. This time, he was determined to defend his championship. From a performance perspective, Sardo was indeed strong enough to win the championship. The threshold result of eight meters was not a difficult task for Sardo.

Perhaps because of his eagerness of win, Sardo had chosen the risky technique for his first three trial jumps, among which only one jump had been successful; the other two jumps had failed. However, the result of his successful jump was 7.85 meters, which ranked 2nd among all participants.

Of course, Sardo was not satisfied with 2nd place; he wanted to win the championship by sweeping the other players. What he had not expected, however, was the emergence of Haiquan Fang, who had ruined his plan. More importantly, Haiquan Fang was an unknown newbie in the international matches. How could Sardo tolerate being defeated by a novice athlete?

Because of this, Sardo eagerly hoped the match would start immediately. He planned to obtain a score that would be enough to win the championship. He hated being in 2nd place, especially behind Haiquan Fang.

Beside him, the coach of the Saudi-Arabian team said, "Sardo, take your time. Sooner or later the championship will be yours. The guy who ranks 1st now was injured in the second trial jump. He has forfeited his third trial jump, which means his injury is too serious, and he cannot return to the match. I think he will continue to forfeit his last three trial jumps."

"The match didn’t start until now; it’s possible that they postponed the match to buy time for his treatment!" Sardo had seen a lot of things in his time, so he realized what was going on.

"I have spoken with the judge, and the judge told me the match has to be postponed for fifteen minutes to cooperate with the TV broadcast," the coach of the Saudi-Arabian team said, "It is quite normal. The matches broadcasted on TV always consider their sponsors. Even the Super Bowl has commercial breaks! Besides, it’s only fifteen minutes. Do you really think they could help the injured guy return to the match in fifteen minutes? If they could, this guy wouldn’t have forfeited his third jump!"

...

Fifteen minutes flew by quickly. The fourth trial jump had begun.

"How is he?" Li Xue asked anxiously.

"Wait a moment, he is still not OK." Dai Li was still performing the rehabilitative massage for Haiquan Fang.

"But the fourth trial jump has begun!" With his brows knitted, Li Xue watched the athletes who were getting ready in the waiting area.

"Forfeit the fourth trial jump!" Dai Li said resolutely.

Li Xue didn’t speak, for it was time for Jinrui Liu, another athlete on the national team, to jump. Jinrui Liu sprung into the air; when he landed, his heels were pressed exactly on the8-meter mark.

"8 meters! Jinrui Liu, well done!" Li Xue clenched his fists excitedly.

Haiquan Fang became even more anxious. The emergence of a better result made him want to return to the playing area.

"Steady; be patient! Take a deep breath," Dai Li said. Haiquan Fang listened to Dai Li’s instructions and adjusted his breathing, trying to suppress his anxiety.

"The result of the Saudi-Arabian player, Mubarah, is 7.92 meters!"

"The result of the Qatar player, Emir, is 7.98 meters!"

The players began to do their best on the fourth trial jump, and their results reflected it; they had improved remarkably.

Finally, Sardo, the long jump champion of the last Asian Games, stood in the run-up area.

Now the highest result is 8.02 meters. My result will exceed 8.10 meters to ensure the championship!

After taking a deep breath, Sardo began his run-up..

"Hah!" As Sardo shouted, he sprung up high into the air; he completed a walking movement in the air before landing in the sandpit steadily.

"He jumped past the 8-meter line." Li Xue felt something tug at his heart. The game official reported the score: 8.11 meters.

"8.11 meters could win championship. Of course it’s Sardo; it seems like he could probably defend his championship!"

Sardo walked out of the playing area with an elated look on his face. He was now in first place, and his lead was quite large. In Asia, only a few player’s could reach 8.11 meters.

Seeing the score of 8.11 meters, Haiquan Fang tried to stand up; but his legs were pressed down tightly by Dai Li.

"Just hang on! You have forfeited your fourth trial jump!" Dai Li looked at Haiquan Fang seriously. "Now you have only one chance, so you have to wait until the end when your leg has recovered more."

Haiquan Fang clenched his teeth and held back again.

...

The coach of the Saudi-Arabian team was smiling. "Sardo, I told you the injured guy would not return to the playing area; he has forfeited his fourth jump."

"He really made me nervous. I thought he could be a dark horse!" Sardo’s face lit up.

"OK, Sardo, now you are No. 1; you will have more advantages during the appearance sequence. You should try to score a better score next time. I believe the championship will be yours!"