He is nobody in the sport of canoe and kayak slalom but he has made history for China at the Beijing Olympic Games.

Feng Liming [sina.com]

His name is Feng Liming, a Sichuan Province native. The 22-year-old finished his Olympic debut in men's C1 slalom semifinal with a result of 94.64 seconds on Tuesday.

The result was far from good but an obvious stride for China as the sport has only a history of nine years in China.

"I did a good job today. I have no regret. I am really honored to represent my country to be here," he said.

Feng started paddling in April 2000 all by accident. His father knew a coach Gui Chengzhong, who coached Olympic sailing silver medalist Yin Jian when she was in the Sichuan Provincial team. The father wanted Feng to try sailing but right at that time he was told there would be a brand new sport to be initiated--canoe/kayak slalom.

Feng knew nothing about the sport but was associated with it out of curiosity.

"I didn't know if I loved the sport or not. After days of practice on that, I began to fancy the sport more and more," said Feng.

Feng showed a great talent only one year after he took the sport. He attended the Ninth National Games, representing Sichuan Province and settling for a seventh finish.

After the National Games, Feng was recruited into the national team and continued with a surge in strength. In 2005, he became the first Chinese paddler to enter the finals of a world cup in men's C1 Slalom.

When everything was going smooth with Feng, he suffered the biggest setback in his lifetime.

"It was the Tenth National Games when I was in good form and had a clear advantage over the rest," said Feng. "I thought I could easily win but it turned out that I finished with a fourth place."

A setback was not a bad thing, at least for Feng.

"I learned to control myself, began to learn from others and became more and more mentally mature," he added.

Drawing from past experiences, Feng was closer to his dream.

"I have played to my best. Next time, I hope to enter the final."

(Xinhua News Agency August 12, 2008)