About
Former Chinese artistic gymnast and television personality known for having been a vault specialist and for her resilience following a life-changing injury at the 1998 Goodwill Games. She is known for being one of China's top vaulters in the mid-1990s and winning major domestic titles including becoming Chinese national vault champion in 1997. She was seriously injured during warm-ups for the vault event at the Goodwill Games in New York in July 1998 which led to her retirement from gymnastics.
Before fame
She began gymnastics training at a young age. She rose quickly through China's competitive system and gained attention early in her career when she won the all-around and all apparatus titles at the 1991 Zhejiang Province Championships. She was competing at the national level by the 1990s. She earned multiple vault medals at the Chinese National Championships including a silver medal in 1995 and additional podium finishes in 1996 and 1998. Her strongest result came in 1997 when she won gold on vault at the Chinese National Championships. She also represented China internationally at invitational competitions such as the American Cup in 1996 and 1997 before being selected to compete at the 1998 Goodwill Games.
Trivia
Her injury at the 1998 Goodwill Games occurred during a warm-up timer vault not during competition. She spent nearly a year in rehabilitation in New York City before returning to China. She eventually regained partial use of her arms and hands through long-term rehabilitation. She appeared in television programming and became involved in public roles related to the 2008 Beijing Olympics including serving as an Olympic torchbearer.
Family life
She was born in Ningbo, Zhejiang, China. She married a former member of China's national fencing team Huang Jian in 2013. They welcomed a son in 2014.
Associated with
She and Dominique Moceanu were both selected to compete at the 1998 Goodwill Games.
