Chapter 540: Nine World Champions

Chapter 540: Nine World Champions

"These little stories all begin with a morning run..."

The stories Meng Fan shared were true and known to very few. Their core message was that hard work pays off, with rewards primarily in love, fame, and a sense of achievement and honor.

For most people, such tales felt vaguely familiar, as if heard somewhere. If spoken by an ordinary person, they'd be dismissed as empty chatter. But coming from Meng Fan, it was entirely different.

First, the credibility was too high. The essence and outcomes of Meng Fan's stories—the rewards reaped—were well-known to everyone. Others might not know, but his classmates from the same year remembered what Meng Fan used to be like. Need I say more? In sports and self-improvement, one must first make up their mind and work hard. It wasn't something that could be achieved just because of a wealthy family, a famous older sister, a mother who was a master of Chinese painting, a father who was a world-class architect, or having enough money.

Second, Meng Fan's voice and smile were incredibly infectious, coupled with his expansive gestures. Under such conditions, even if he were reading a string of garbled text, it would be captivating, let alone sharing his own positive personal experiences.

As the saying goes, memories after success are stories; glorious deeds without success are accidents. It's fortunate that Meng Fan is still quite young; otherwise, he would have surpassed figures like Ma Zhong to become the most talkative person in his circle.

That said, from a functional perspective, Meng Fan's speech was highly positive. It would inspire many present to move forward, at least granting them immense spiritual strength in the short term. After a while, some would forget, while others would have already taken many steps forward.

After the graduation ceremony, many students surged toward the temporary job fair.

Meng Fan didn't go to the job fair, nor did he return with Wu Tong and the others. Instead, he headed to the college leadership office. Though Meng Fan had spent most of his time in Hangzhou recently and visited the art academy frequently, his visits were irregular, making it hard for the leadership to "catch" him. This time, they dragged him to finalize matters regarding "student recruitment."

Another important matter was Meng Fan's teaching career starting in the second half of the year. Typically, one begins as a teaching assistant, and Meng Fan was no exception. However, his permissions were quite open—he was allowed and even encouraged to teach a course. But considering Meng Fan's time constraints, the academy, based on his situation and requirements, devised several plans for him to choose from.

Earlier, Meng Fan had "excessively" proposed offering his own course. Later, he gradually developed the course content and syllabus, submitting a teaching plan.

Normally, it's impossible for a teaching assistant to lead a course, let alone have the authority of a renowned professor to start a new class. But Meng Fan couldn't be judged by normal standards. The plans the leadership offered this time essentially approved his application.

Part of the reason was undoubtedly Meng Fan's fame, but not solely that. It was also because Meng Fan had sponsored a large educational fund... In reality, the most important factor was Meng Fan's ability. In comics, whether in drawing skill, scriptwriting, or paneling, Meng Fan was unquestionably the best in the industry. He had also systematically organized a set of teaching materials and a matching practical plan.

The final decision was to name Meng Fan's course "Comprehensive Comic Fundamentals and Humanities Knowledge Structure and Practice." It would be an elective, open only to freshmen, consisting of fourteen sessions. The teaching schedule would primarily follow Meng Fan's availability, with advance notice. Additionally, there was a requirement: Meng Fan needed to teach two pilot courses to gauge their effectiveness, with adjustments based on results. These courses would be held soon, targeting students who hadn't yet gone on break.

The decision was made that day, registration opened the next, and classes began the third. Besides students from the Animation School, many teachers also attended, all coming to evaluate Meng Fan's course with critical eyes.

Meng Fan took this course very seriously. For him, it related to his plans for the rest of his life. Emotionally and in terms of self-fulfillment, he hoped to spend his later years at the art academy. Well, from the current perspective, there was an additional possibility: spending time simultaneously in sports, driven by his sense of responsibility. An athlete's career always ends in retirement, and after retiring, he might become a coach at a sports institute. Speaking of which, he quite liked the atmosphere there.

This might seem like premature planning, but it's always good to prepare ahead.

After the first course, the classroom atmosphere and reactions from students and teachers were excellent. Meng Fan felt it was somewhat lacking, but after adjusting his approach for the second course, he felt much better. The transition from high-level concepts to simple explanations finally became natural and integrated.

In the eyes of students and teachers, Meng Fan's teaching charm and knowledge delivery were overwhelmingly powerful. After the two courses, many noticed a peculiar sensation: they could maintain high concentration throughout Meng Fan's class, experience a kind of "spiritual" exhaustion akin to a sage's moment afterward, and then find that the knowledge points from his class were particularly firmly memorized.

Someone described it like this: Meng Fan's voice was like divine craftsmanship carving into the mind, but what it carved wasn't the entirety of his lecture content. Instead, it broke the content down into individual strokes, making it deeply memorable without confining one to his thoughts. It made you remember firmly and taught you to use it flexibly!

After the two courses, all matters regarding Meng Fan's teaching were settled. The academy began filing records and such. Starting in the second half of the year, the Animation Department would add this elective. However, shortly after the decision, a small change occurred: it was ultimately decided to open the course to all freshmen across the entire academy, not just the Animation Department. Teachers who had attended the course unanimously believed it would greatly benefit students from other departments, providing them with crucial creative thinking skills.

Meng Fan naturally had no objection. Whether herding one sheep or a flock, it was the same. His main confidence lay in not misleading students.

After this was settled, Meng Fan went to compete in the Diamond League. He won consecutive championships in two events over three meets, setting new records each time, accumulating 24 points per event. This secured his spot in the finals, so he decided not to participate in the next three meets. Instead, he began preparing for various world championships that year.

World championships occur every two years, and Meng Fan had many to attend: the World Judo Championships, World Wrestling Championships, World Weightlifting Championships, and World Athletics Championships, all concentrated in the second half of the year.

In terms of scheduling, these four championships didn't conflict. World championships are the top-tier events in each sport. The sports authority naturally hoped Meng Fan would participate in all, as the honor of a world championship is nearly on par with the Olympics. However, considering Meng Fan's numerous events, they ultimately only required him to attend the World Athletics Championships. After all, Meng Fan had already won Olympic gold in weightlifting, wrestling, and judo, while in shot put and javelin, strictly speaking, he hadn't yet claimed the title of world champion.

Nevertheless, Meng Fan voluntarily requested to participate in all of them.

He decided to dedicate the three months from August to November entirely to sports. After this cycle, he would take a break, entering a semi-retired state. Except for the Asian Games in Hangzhou next year, he wouldn't compete in any sports events until the next Olympic cycle.

The sports authority cared deeply about Meng Fan. While agreeing to his break, they still let him choose which events to participate in, only making the World Athletics Championships mandatory.

In the end, Meng Fan chose to participate in all of them. What could the sports authority say? They instructed the team leaders and coaching staff of each sport to monitor closely. If any abnormalities in Meng Fan's stamina or other aspects were detected, he should withdraw directly, without pushing or forcing it.

...

On August 2, Meng Fan traveled with the national wrestling team to Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, for the World Wrestling Championships. There, he received a warm welcome from the locals. Before his arrival, local media reported on his friendships with several famous Kazakh wrestlers, weightlifters, and shot putters, weaving touching stories.

During the competition, Meng Fan dominated, winning both the freestyle and Greco-Roman championships.

After finishing here, Meng Fan immediately flew to Lima, Peru, for the World Weightlifting Championships. By the time he arrived, the weightlifting team was already there. After a brief pre-competition familiarization with the venue, Meng Fan's main preparation was adjusting to the time difference.

At this weightlifting world championship, the Chinese team was undoubtedly the star. They sent 23 male and female athletes to compete in 15 individual events, winning a total of 11 gold medals, all in Olympic events—the weightlifting world championship had 20 events total, with 14 being Olympic events. Medals were spread across men's and women's teams, as well as various weight classes.

They also set 16 new world records—including snatch, clean and jerk, and total—8 for men and 8 for women.

Meng Fan personally set new world records in the 105+ kg category for snatch, clean and jerk, and total, improving each by 1 kg in snatch and clean and jerk, and 2 kg in total.

The Chinese weightlifting team led the gold medal table with over half the golds, achieving this feat for the third time after 1997 and 2019!

The weightlifting world championship lasted ten days. As soon as it ended, Meng Fan headed north to the United States for the World Athletics Championships, to be held in Eugene. A small detail: the Diamond League had two stops in North America, one of which was in Eugene, held just three days after this championship. Most athletes who qualified would stay for it, and this stop happened to include javelin. However, Meng Fan, having already secured his spot in the finals, didn't plan to participate.

Eugene, known as "Track Town, USA," has hosted many track and field events and is also a venue for top-tier competitions like cycling and canoeing.

Upon landing, Meng Fan was swarmed by a barrage of cameras and microphones at the airport. Among the journalists, entertainment reporters outnumbered those covering track and field. Clearly, North American entertainment media had a strong interest in Meng Fan. After the UFC incident, they had witnessed his news value and constantly hoped he would stir up something new.

Seeing his contact person, Meng Fan walked straight over. The North American reporters clearly hadn't expected such a cold demeanor from him, nor had they anticipated his calmness in the face of such a siege. They then realized the courage needed to corner Meng Fan—his presence alone made everyone retreat. Yet, despite this, the North American reporters still manufactured news, using Meng Fan's coolness at the airport to spin stories.

This time, there was a fair amount of gap between the two championships, unlike the previous rush. Besides familiarizing himself with the venue and training with the track team, Meng Fan had time to wander around with his teammates.

A few days later, the world championship officially began, spanning ten days. For the first few days, Meng Fan had no events. He spent most of his time in the athletes' apartment drawing and holding video conferences, occasionally going to watch competitions.

For instance, he definitely wanted to experience the men's 100-meter sprint. Unlike Diamond League meets, the world championship's final featured only the world's top sprinters who had passed the qualifiers, making for an exhilarating spectacle.

On the third competition day, the Chinese team won its first gold medal, in the women's race walk, a traditional strength for China in track and field.

On the fifth competition day, Meng Fan competed in the men's shot put. His first throw broke his own world record, and then he forfeited subsequent throws until the event ended.

The javelin event was on the seventh competition day. Meng Fan's first throw reached 101 meters. Not breaking the record, he threw again, then forfeited the rest.

In these two events, Meng Fan had complete dominance, unshakable.

The only regret likely came from the spectators, who saw Meng Fan throw only three times in total and felt it wasn't enough.

After the seventh competition day, Meng Fan left Eugene early to return home. After a few days of rest, he flew to the World Judo Championships, winning the individual and mixed team titles.

By October 20, Meng Fan had completed all four world championships, securing nine world titles—the weightlifting championship counted snatch, clean and jerk, and total separately—spanning five major disciplines.

On the 22nd, returning home, Meng Fan announced his decision to take a break in an interview, thanking the sports authority and teams for supporting his choice. When a reporter pressed him about his future plans, Meng Fan smiled but didn't answer.

However, everyone knew that Meng Fan's break didn't mean retirement, nor would he vanish from the public eye. He would reappear in another capacity, and frequently at that.

(End of chapter)