Moments after clocking 8.01 seconds in the women's 60m hurdles semifinals at the 2025 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China's Wu Yanni knew she had rewritten history.

Though falling short of the final, her time lowered China's 11-year-old national record of 8.02s set by Wu Shuijiao in 2014. Hours later, the 27-year-old spoke to Xinhua about her journey, ambitions, and the weight of expectations.

"I had that feeling," Wu recalled of crossing the line. "I thought I was third or fourth, but when the second-place time flashed as 8.00 seconds, I thought, 'Oh well, at least I'll have a personal best.' Then mine came up. I just cried."

The newly minted record-holder, however, quickly shifted focus. "Right now, I'm calm," she said. "Once you achieve something, you start over. I can't dwell on the record. I need to keep refining my technique."

Wu Yanni (L) competes in the women's 100m hurdles repechage round at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Aug. 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Lui Siu Wai)

Wu arrived in Nanjing determined to break the barrier. "I knew I was capable," she revealed. "But no one around me dared mention it. Even my mom told the team not to bring it up."

Her progress has been relentless. Since 2018, Wu has claimed five national 100m hurdles titles and two indoor 60m hurdles crowns. Last season, she lowered her 100m hurdles personal best to 12.74 seconds, securing a Paris Olympic berth, and three times improved her 60m hurdles mark, with the best being 8.06. This winter, she doubled down on strength training.

"Track is brutal. It's pure raw ability," Wu explained. "This off-season, I barely touched hurdles. It was all about power and speed. And that translates directly. Our event demands absolute strength."

Wu's weighted squats surged from 90kg to 120kg, yet she remains humbled by the standard of global competition.

"Look at the Europeans here, their power, thighs and upper bodies. We Asians look like children beside them," she said. "That's the gap. I've raced internationally more now, but experience still lags. We need to compete abroad constantly to elevate Chinese hurdling."

At last year's Paris Olympics, Wu finished over 0.2 seconds off her best. "I went there to learn. Domestically or in Asia, if I execute cleanly, I win. But internationally, I'm always chasing," she reflected.

Undeterred, Wu eyes September's World Championships in Tokyo, where the 100m hurdles standard sits at 12.73, which is 0.01 faster than her current personal best. "I'll hit that mark on merit, not rankings and points."

Her immediate target? Toppling the 31-year-old national 100m hurdles record of 12.64. "Long-term, I want Olympic finals and the Asian record [12.44]."

Amidst viral fame and scrutiny over her style and persona, Wu stays grounded. "I'm here to make China's hurdling known worldwide. Public attention fades, hard results stay. I won't let noise distract me. My job is to leave no regrets."

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