Chen Yujie: 17-Year-Old Flies to Asian Gold
Welcome back to Learn English with Podcasts! Sarah, quick question — how fast can you run 100 meters?欢迎回到 Learn English with Podcasts！Sarah，先问你个问题——你跑100米要多久？
Me? Maybe 18 seconds, if I am lucky. Why? Are you timing me now?我？运气好的话18秒吧。怎么，你现在就要给我计时吗？
No, no. I am just thinking about a girl who runs it in 11.06 seconds. She is 17. And last night, she became the fastest woman in Asia.不不。我只是想到一个女孩，她跑100米只要11.06秒。她才17岁。昨天晚上，她成了全亚洲跑得最快的女人。
17? Wait, are you talking about Chen Yujie at the Asian Games?17岁？等等，你说的是亚运会上的陈妤颉吗？
Yes. September 25, night, in Nagoya. The women's 100-meter final at Mizuho Park Stadium. Chen Yujie, lane five, first from the start, first at the finish.对。9月25号晚上，在名古屋。瑞穗公园体育场的女子百米决赛。陈妤颉在第五道，从起跑第一，到终点还是第一。
11.06 seconds. That broke the old Asian Games record of 11.15 seconds, right?11.06秒。这打破了原来11.15秒的亚运会纪录，对吧？
By a lot. Almost a full tenth of a second. And it was also her personal best. Her old best was 11.08 seconds.超了一大截。将近十分之一秒。这也是她个人的最好成绩。她以前最快是11.08秒。
That is amazing for a first Asian Games. Was she the favorite before the race?第一次参加亚运会就这样，太厉害了。赛前她是夺冠热门吗？
Not really. Her best of 11.08 seconds was only number two among all the runners. Singapore's champion Pereira and a star from Bahrain were very strong.不算。她11.08秒的最好成绩在所有选手里只排第二。新加坡冠军佩雷拉和巴林名将都很强。
So how did she sound before the race? Nervous?那她赛前怎么说的？紧张吗？
The opposite. She said she would race like a newborn calf that fears no tiger. It is a Chinese saying — young people are brave because they are new.正相反。她说要用初生牛犊不怕虎的劲儿去冲击对手。这是句中国话——年轻人因为新，所以勇敢。
I love that. A newborn calf. But she was smart too, right? She did not run full speed every time.我喜欢这个说法。初生牛犊。不过她也很聪明，对吧？她不是每枪都全力跑。
Exactly. On September 24, in the heats, she saved energy. On September 25 in the evening, in the semi-final, she saved energy again. Just enough to qualify.没错。9月24号预赛，她留着力。9月25号傍晚半决赛，她还是留着力。刚好确保晋级就行。
Then at 10:10 at night, the final. The whole stadium goes quiet. The gun fires.然后晚上10点10分，决赛。全场屏住呼吸。发令枪响。
And she leads from the first step. No one catches her. 11.06 seconds! A new record, a new personal best, and a gold medal for China.她从第一步就领先。没人追得上。11.06秒！新纪录、新个人最佳，还有一枚属于中国的金牌。
At 17, that trophy case must already be full. What has she done before?17岁，她的荣誉柜肯定已经满了。她以前都拿过什么？
A lot. She ran at the Tokyo World Championships in 2025. She ran at two World Relays for China. She holds the Asian youth record in the 100 meters.很多。她参加过2025年东京世锦赛。代表中国跑过两届世界接力赛。她保持着女子百米亚洲青年纪录。
And the 200 meters too?200米呢？
She holds the Asian junior records in both the 100 and the 200 meters. And last year, at the National Games, she won both — double champion.100米和200米的亚洲少年纪录都是她的。去年全运会，她两个都拿了冠军——双冠王。
Okay, so on the track she is a tiger. Off the track?好吧，赛道上她是老虎。赛道下呢？
Totally different. Off the track she is lively and playful. Fans call her kid sister because she is the youngest, and she runs the fastest.完全不一样。赛道下她活泼又俏皮。粉丝叫她小孩姐，因为她年龄最小，跑得却最快。
How did she react to that name?她对这个外号什么反应？
She said it comes from love. And then she added something bigger — as the country grows, every field will have its own kid brother and kid sister.她说这个称呼来自大家的喜爱。然后她还加了一句更大的话——随着祖国发展，各行各业都会有自己的小孩哥、小孩姐。
Wow, that does not sound like 17. That sounds like someone much older.哇，这可不像17岁说的话。听起来像年纪大得多的人。
She also said this gold is the best adult gift for herself — she turns 18 at the end of this year.她还说这枚金牌是给自己的最好的成人礼——她今年年底就满18岁了。
The best gift, and she gave herself only 60 points for this Asian Games? I read that.最好的礼物，可她只给自己这次亚运会打了60分？我看到这条了。
Yes! Because there are still two events to come — the women's 200 meters and the 4x100-meter relay. In her mind, the job is only half done.对！因为还有两个项目等着她——女子200米和4×100米接力。在她心里，任务才完成一半。
So the newborn calf has become a tiger, and the tiger is still hungry.所以初生牛犊已经化成猛虎，而这只猛虎还饿着呢。
That is the line from the reports. And think about it — she broke the record, won the gold, and walked away a little unhappy with herself.报道里就是这么写的。再想想——她破了纪录、拿了金牌，走下场时还对自己有点不满意。
Maybe that is why she wins. At 17, 60 points feels like failure. For the rest of us, just finishing 100 meters feels like gold.也许这就是她赢的原因。17岁，60分都觉得是失败。对我们普通人来说，能跑完100米就算是金牌了。
Thanks for listening to Learn English with Podcasts. Tell us — what would you give yourself 60 points for today?感谢收听 Learn English with Podcasts。告诉我们——今天的你，会给自己哪件事打60分？