Last year was as triumphant as the millennium Olympic year for Chinese athletes, considering they won 90 world championships and set 10 world records.

The 90 titles came from 23 sports including household pastimes like ping-pong and badminton to little-known amusements like radio-controlled model boating and dragon boats.

To fans' surprise, the biggest winner of all Chinese sports teams last year was not the all-conquering Chinese table tennis or badminton squad, but the national short-tracking speed skating team who bear the nation's hope to win China's first Winter Olympics gold medal next month in Salt Lake City.

The team snatched 21 world titles and two world records through the year from six World Cup Tournaments, World Championships and World Team Championships.

Backbone Yang Yang (A) confirmed her No 1 status in the world with 11 titles from individual and team events.

The Chinese martial art team followed the track with 12 titles. The ping-pong and dive teams followed both with eight. The shooting team shot down seven and three world marks.

There are abundant unforgettable moments among those 90 titles, which represent China's brightest sports achievement in the past 12 months.

The women's recurve team won the first archery world title for China in the 41st World Championships in Beijing last September by beating defending champion Italy in a thrilling finale.

Xu Nannan and Yu Shumei broke the European dominance on the snow, winning a gold from women's aerial free-style skiing and women's 12.5-kilometre biathlon respectively in last March's World Cup Finals.

Meng Lili and Zhang Maomao both crowned in the World Women's Wrestling Championship and inaugural World Women's Boxing Championship respectively to demonstrate China's potential mark on the sports.

The most surprising victory came from 16-year-old Feng Jing, who overcame a powerful field that included several world champions to win the coveted men's individual all-around in the 35th World Gymnastics Championship. The victory is nothing more than a miracle for the fledgling in his first championship.

And the two swimming titles from World Championships presented by Luo Xuejuan were of the most significance. They signalled a revival for Chinese swimming, which hit doldrums in recent years.

Luo combined with other new swimming talents to set six new world records last year.

(China Daily January 7, 2002)