Fu Mingxia left home at age 9 to train in Beijing. She was selected into the Chinese Junior diving team in 1989 at the age of 11. Fu's hard work began to pay off 12 days before her 12th birthday when she earned the platform-diving gold medal at the 1990 Goodwill Games. Six months later, she became the youngest diver ever to win gold at the World Championships.

"I began to practice diving at the age of nine. I still remember the first time I stood on top of the 10-meter-platform," she said. "It was so high above the water! But we had a professional rule: a diver must leave the platform from the front, that means you have to dive. A diver can never descend by the stairs at the rear of the platform. So I jumped. I was scared to death. My heart was about to come out of my body. But I did it."

Down she went, and her career rose to the top like a bubble of air. Only three years later, at the 1990 Friendship Games in the United States, she won her first international title. The following year, she became the youngest world champion ever, age 13, after she collected another crown at the 1991 World Championships.

Her winning streak continued as she took the gold medal in the women's 10-meter platform at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. This time, she became the youngest Olympic diving champion of all time.

"I think a female diver can easily reach the peak of her career before 15," she said. "But after that, you have to endure many growing pains. For example, to retain the elegance of the sport, one has to keep a slim figure. But your body is developing. You need to eat to provide your body with enough nutrients and stuff. I was really miserable. I felt hungry shortly after I had a meal. I couldn't explain why I felt hungry so quickly, but that was the case then."

Apart from an annoying weight problem, Fu Mingxia also faced the problem of illness. Years of hard training not only brought her fame, but also countless injuries, and pressure that was almost unbearable. She confessed that she cried many times during her preparation for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, but found consolation in music.

"Over the years, music has played a great role in my life. I had a large collection, and so did my teammates. We sometimes had music playing at our training center," she said. "I found comfort and peace in those beautiful melodies."

Fu Mingxia succeeded again in Atlanta. Not only had she reaffirmed her dominance on the 10-meter platform, but also showed her talent on the three-meter springboard. She won gold medals in both these events, writing another chapter in Olympic history.

But the physically and mentally exhausted star decided to bid farewell to both the platform and the board. Fu Mingxia announced her retirement after the Atlanta Olympic Games. She chose to study at Tsinghua University, one of the top universities in China. The decision aroused some criticism, because none of her teammates could step up to take her place. But a grown-up and very determined Fu Mingxia refused to change her decision, and went off to enjoy life on campus.

She was very happy, and we saw her gaining weight, a problem that had annoyed her for years, but now no longer troubled her. But while Fu Mingxia was enjoying a relaxed university life, she felt something itching deep down inside her heart. It was the familiar splashing of water.

As if to comfort her nostalgia for the sport, a pool was built on the campus and a university diving club was started. Fu Mingxia decided to make a comeback.

"I didn't dream of competing for the Olympics again at that time. I just felt that I still wanted to dive, and there were the National University Games in sight, so I decided to come back," she said. "Later on, when I regained my strength and agility, I had the big dream of competing in my third Olympiad. I worked very hard, and successfully passed the national trial. I finished second, thereby winning a place on the national Olympic squad."

In Sydney, Fu Mingxia suffered a setback though it would be seen as a great achievement for most divers. She and her teammate only took second place in the women's three-meter synchronized diving. But it came as no surprise, because the duo had only practiced together for less than six months, while their Russian counterparts, the reigning world champions, had worked together for several years. A sophisticated Fu Mingxia smiled again, and said she was happy with her first Olympic silver medal. A few days later, she returned to the board for the individual event. Her confidence and perfect skills convinced the judges, as well as the spectators and her competitors that she was the best. She had won her fourth Olympic gold. Fu Mingxia again made Olympic history, as her four golds and one silver lifted her head and shoulders above all the female divers the world has ever seen.

"Diving is a one-second-art," she said. "It takes a diver only 1.7 seconds from the 10-meter-platform to the water surface down below. So I call it a one-second-art. It requires you to fully display the beauty of the sport in only a second. It's very demanding, but I love the challenge."

On July 15, 2002, Fu Mingxia married the then Hong Kong Financial Secretary Antony Leung Kamchung and gave birth to a baby girl in the Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong early this year. 

Honor:

1989 American Seattle World Friendship Sports Game: champion in women's diving event

1991 6th World Tournament: champion in platform, listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the youngest athlete in the world

1992 Barcelona Olympic: champion in women's 10 meter platform, became the youngest Olympic diving champion of all time.

1994 7th World Tournament: champion in platform

1995 9th World Cup: champion in springboard, runner-up in platform

1996 Atlanta Olympic: champion in platform and springboard

1996 elected China's Ten Best Athlete of 1996

1999 National Diving Championship: 3rd place in 3 meter springboard

1999 National Tournament: 3rd place in 3 meter springboard

2000 World Cup: 2nd place in 3 meter springboard single

2000 National Diving Championship: Champion in 3 meter springboard double, 2nd place in 3 meter springboard single

2000 Sydney Olympic: champion in 3 meter springboard

(Xinhua News Agency October 31, 2003)