Dong recommended herself to the Hebei wheelchair tennis team and without much persuasion, she was accepted.

"My mom had said, 'Being perfect isn't an option of life. Simply do the best you can do.' I am a hard worker like my mom. Guess what? One month after I picked up the tennis racket, I won my first national championship," said Dong.

In 1994, Dong represented China in the Far East and South Pacific Games for the Disabled (FESPIC Games), picking a doubles silver and a singles bronze. She claimed the singles gold in Japan Open in 2005 and the doubles gold and singles silver in the 2006 FESPIC Games.

Dong has a 17-year-old daughter born to her first husband, who was killed in a car accident in 2005. Her second husband Chen Yong is a tennis coach.

"Despite back-to-back tragedies, I always look at the bright side of life. Both my daughter and husband are very supportive of my career," said Dong.

"I am very proud of my daughter. She has been a good help in family chores since she was 6. And she is proud of me too. She never feels embarrassed when she introduces me to her friends."

When a deadly earthquake hit southwest China's Sichuan province on May 12, Dong was playing a tournament outside China.

"I was saddened when I heard the news," said Dong. "Everything flashed back to my mind: collapsed buildings, amputated limbs, dead bodies, grieving faces."

To the survivors of the quake, Guo said: "You must trust yourself. Be strong. Be Happy. Live a happy life, not only for yourself, but for the beloved ones who are no longer there."

(Xinhua News Agency September 8, 2008)