Lives Changed by Gold: Where Are China's Olympic Champions Now? 08/12/2024 At the recently concluded Paris 2024 Summer Olympics, the Chinese team won 40 gold medals, tying with the United States for first place in the world. In the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, China achieved a historic breakthrough by winning its first-ever Olympic gold medal. In just 40 years, China has risen from having zero gold medals to becoming a gold medal powerhouse. From Xu Haifeng winning China’s first gold medal in shooting in 1984 to Li Wenwen securing the most recent gold in women's weightlifting in 2024, China has produced a total of 319 Olympic champions. There is no doubt that the efforts of these champions have reshaped China’s image in the Olympic Games. But has winning an Olympic gold medal truly changed their personal lives? Are champions in different sports given equal opportunities to capitalize on their fame? An athletic career is ultimately short-lived—how do these athletes transition into their second lives after retirement? And how have the expectations placed on the Olympics by the Chinese public influenced the career trajectories of these champions? 歪脑 ｜WHYNOThas compiled publicly available information on the 319 Olympic champions born and raised in mainland China from 1984 to the present. By analyzing data such as their birthplaces, current residences, sports disciplines, and career paths, we can get a glimpse of the second life map of Chinese Olympic champions under the national sports system. WHYNOT shares our findings with you. Hover over the charts to explore detailed information. I. Most Olympic champions remain within the system after retirement Unlike the Western model of community-based management, China follows the Soviet-style "state-sponsored sports system," where athletes are directly selected and trained by national sports agencies. Since the era of a planned economy, sports have been separated from general education in China, and professional sports have further branched off from general sports, becoming a specialized "occupation." Retired athletes traditionally benefited from a state-assigned job placement policy. After retirement, in addition to becoming coaches, most Olympic champions "iron rice bowl" government positions within the sports system, often taking roles such as deputy directors of sports bureaus. By the 1980s, as positions within the sports administration system became saturated, retired athletes started transitioning into non-sports-related government sectors. However, data shows that only a small fraction of Olympic champions have pursued political careers outside the sports system. Those who did typically began their political journey within sports institutions and gradually climbed the ranks, assuming roles such as vice chairperson of the Women's Federation or secretary of the Communist Youth League at the provincial level. Around 2000, as China expanded university admissions, a series of national and local policies allowed retired athletes to enter higher education institutions without taking entrance exams. This policy broadened the possibilities for Olympic champions’ "second life." An increasing number of them pursued academic positions in sports universities or general institutions, often obtaining titles such as associate professor or even dean. 1987–2000: A brief peak in employment outside the system As seen in the chart, from 1984 to the present, the number of Olympic champions employed within the system (represented in red) has consistently been much higher than those working outside the system (represented in blue). "Within the system" employment has been the dominant choice for most Olympic champions. However, it is worth noting that between 1987 and 2000, there were several small peaks in "outside the system" employment, with business ventures being a primary career path. Some scholars view this period as a transition from a "state-assigned employment" model to a "market-driven" system. It was during this time that Olympic champions began venturing into entrepreneurship and business after retirement. One prominent example is Li Ning, known as the "first prince of gymnastics." He won six medals (three gold, two silver, and one bronze) at the 1984 Olympics. After retiring in 1988, he first joined Guangdong Jianlibao Group, and later founded the "Li Ning" brand—now one of China's most influential sportswear brands. After 2002, the central and local governments introduced policies to support the reemployment and further education of retired athletes. Since then, the proportion of Olympic champions employed outside the system has never surpassed those within it. Among China’s traditionally strong Olympic sports, gymnastics is the only discipline where employment within and outside the system is nearly equal. Other sports, such as diving, badminton, and volleyball, have also seen a few gold medalists leave the system for alternative career paths. II. After retirement, Olympic champions are more likely to settle in Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities or move overseas Against the backdrop of China's rapid urbanization, most Chinese Olympic champions experience an upward mobility in household registration (hukou) status after winning gold medals. The chart below compares their birthplaces and current residences, revealing a significant leftward shift—most were born in third-, fourth-, or fifth-tier cities. A Beijing sports official once stated in an interview: children from rural areas or those from less privileged families tend to be more resilient and hardworking. After retirement, the vast majority of Olympic champions settle in second-tier cities or higher. Shooting, badminton, table tennis, volleyball, diving, weightlifting, and gymnastics are China's traditionally dominant Olympic sports. According to WHYNOT’s data analysis, among these seven sports, gymnastics champions have achieved the most significant hukou upward mobility. In contrast, weightlifting athletes face a more challenging transition. Over 20 years ago, the article “The Death of a Weightlifting Champion(一个举重冠军之死)” depicted the tragic fate of a former Asian Games weightlifting champion who, after retiring, worked as a security guard and died in poverty due to a lack of medical care. As one media report stated: more than injuries, the greatest challenges these athletes face are the difficulty of monetizing their skills and the low level of professionalization in their sport, which are the main causes of their post-retirement financial struggles. III. Male Olympic Gymnastics champions retire later, with the largest age difference at retirement between male and female gymnasts Most Olympic champions continue their sports careers for a period of time after winning their first gold medal. Among different sports, gymnastics champions retire the earliest, while shooting champions have the longest careers. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the country has participated in the Olympics since 1952. However, due to dissatisfaction with Taiwan competing under the name "China" and other political factors, China boycotted the Olympics for 28 years. China resumed participation in the Olympics in 1980. As of the conclusion of the 2024 Paris Olympics, China has produced over 301 Olympic champions, with female athletes making up approximately 67% of this group. This is directly related to the large number of female athletes in China's Olympic teams. Some media believe that since professional men's sports are well-developed in the West, China, as a latecomer striving to quickly become a global sports powerhouse, must focus on developing women’s soccer, softball, and other niche sports to maximize their chances of winning gold medals. However, when comparing absolute retirement ages, WHYNOT found that male Olympic champions retire later than their female counterparts. The median retirement age for men is 29 years old, while for women, it is 27. Among sports with both male and female athletes, gymnastics shows the largest gender gap in retirement age, whereas sports like shooting and taekwondo have nearly identical retirement ages for men and women. IV. Retirement peaks right after the Summer Olympic Games WHYNOT found that in the year of the Summer Olympics and the first year after, the number of Olympic champions retiring showed significant peaks. The concentrated years of retirement are related to the Summer Olympic cycle. This trend is not as evident in the Winter Olympics, likely because China has far fewer Winter Olympic champions than Summer Olympic champions. Since 1949, Mao Zedong repeatedly emphasized that the Chinese nation must shed the "Sick Man of East Asia" label and personally led efforts to establish the "All-China Sports Federation" to develop the country's sports industry. Under the state-sponsored sports system, the philosophy of "gold medals above all" and "utilitarianism" became deeply rooted in people’s hearts. In 1995, China's State Sports Commission introduced the “Plan for Olympic Glory（奥运争光计划）”, which concentrated resources on niche sports with a high gold medal potential. This strategy, often compared to the ancient Chinese "Tian Ji Horse Racing" strategy, allowed China to rapidly transform from a nation with zero Olympic gold medals to a dominant force in global sports. As a result, athletes—whether by choice or obligation—came to view the Olympics as both an opportunity to serve the country and the pinnacle of their careers. However, failure and withdrawal from competition were long considered unacceptable by the public. The experience of Li Ning, China's first "Prince of Gymnastics," is a prime example. After faltering in the 1988 Seoul Olympics, he faced immense backlash, with some even symbolically offering him a knife, implying he should take responsibility for his failure. Similarly, in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, hurdler Liu Xiang withdrew due to injury, falling from a national hero to being mocked as "Liu paopao (Liu the Runner)" and subjected to online abuse. Chinese Olympians not only bear the pressure of competition but also the heavy responsibility of shaping China’s image as a sports powerhouse. Li Ning once reflected in an interview that, at that time, people needed gold medals, not sports. But nearly 40 years later, has China's "gold medal above all" mindset truly changed? In China, the title of Olympic champion can transform a person’s life. Most champions secure stable jobs within the system and experience upward social mobility in their household registrations. The Olympic Games carry enormous symbolic weight for these athletes, and their retirement decisions often align with the Olympic cycle. However, behind each champion are thousands of ordinary athletes striving for gold medals. Reports indicate that around 4,000 athletes retire in China each year, with 80% facing unemployment, injuries, poverty, and other survival challenges. Without the honor and halo of a championship title, these "non-Olympic champions" often fade into obscurity. Some resort to street performances or manual labor, such as working in bathhouses as massage attendants, and many struggle to find reemployment. It is crucial to remember that these athletes, like Olympic champions, endured years of rigorous, closed-door training under the state-sponsored system, sacrificed time with their families, and bore the weight of national expectations. Many also suffer from long-term health issues due to their careers. They, too, deserve the same level of respect and societal support. Methodology WHYNOT analyzed data on Olympic champions from the Chinese delegation at the Summer and Winter Olympic Games from 1984 to 2024. The dataset does not include information related to the Paralympic Games. Figure 1: Based on publicly available data, this dataset excludes samples where the athlete's current occupation is "unknown" or those still “active”. Figure 2: China's city classification follows the 2024 “New First-Tier City Charm Rankings（新一线城市魅力排行榜）" published by China Business Network (“第一财经”), which includes 337 prefecture-level and higher cities in mainland China, and other county-level cities and below. Samples with an "unknown" hometown or current residence, as well as those born overseas, were also excluded.To quantify residential mobility, WHYNOT encoded the data as follows: "County-level city and below" = 0 "Fifth-tier city" = 1, with values increasing incrementally "Hong Kong and overseas" = 7 The mobility score was calculated as the difference between the current residence type and the hometown city type. The average mobility score for each sport was derived by dividing the total mobility score by the number of retired Olympic champions in that sport. Figure 3: The dataset excludes athletes who are still "active" and only includes sports in which both male and female athletes have won Olympic gold medals. Figure 4: The dataset excludes all 22 Winter Olympic champions and athletes who are still "active," focusing solely on retired Summer Olympic champions.