Special Report: 1st Anniversary of Wenchuan
Earthquake
CHENGDU, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang
Monday visited students in a primary school in Beichuan County, a hard-hit area
in last year's devastating May 12 earthquake, and showed them how to run
hurdles.
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Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang waves a flag
at a primary school in quake-hit Beichuan county, southwest China's
Sichuan province, Monday May 11, 2009. (Xinhua Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
Liu, 25 and once the world champion of 110-meter
hurdling, made his visit to Sichuan Province to mark the first anniversary of
the disaster, which falls on Tuesday.
The gold medalist in the Athens Olympic Games in 2004
had a physical education class with students of Ping'an Hope Primary School on a
40-meter-long and 4-meter-wide aisle between the school's prefabricated
buildings.
Surrounded by about 100 pupils, Liu spoke about
various methods for running hurdles and demonstrated how to do it right for the
pupils in about 20 minutes.
Liu also showed students how to do standard leg lifts
when he saw some of them were not doing well enough.
He said it would not be a show of hurdling before his
visit to the school.
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Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang shows quake
zone pupils how to hurdle at a primary school in Beichuan county,
southwest China's Sichuan province, Monday May 11,
2009. (Xinhua Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
"It is a memorable experience for children, even for
me, to have these lessons with a world champion," said Luo, a teacher at the
school.
Liu said before leaving that the time with the
children was too short and promised to return.
Liu has been in training since he returned to
Shanghai in March after three months in the United States, where he underwent
surgery on his right ankle tendon in December.
His right ankle injury forced him out of the 2008
Beijing Olympic Games despite high hopes for a gold medal in his home country,
and the world is now waiting to see his comeback on the track.
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Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang poses for
photgraphs with quake zone pupils at a primary school in Beichuan county,
southwest China's Sichuan province, Monday May 11,
2009. (Xinhua Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
The worst quake in decades left 68,712 people dead
and another 17,921 missing in southwest China.
