At the 2004 Athens Olympics, a young Chinese man stunned the world by winning the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 12.91 seconds.
This Olympic champion shocked the world again on July 11, 2006, in Lausanne, Switzerland by breaking the men's 110 meter hurdles world record with a time of 12.88 seconds— a world record he went on to hold for nearly four years.
The remarkable Olympic champion is Liu Xiang, a humble, hardworking, and humorous 25-year-old athlete from China.
Liu has written a brand new page in the track and field history books. Before him, no Chinese or Asian athlete had won the 110 meter hurdles or achieved this level of success in short-distance running at the world level. "China has me. Asia has me!" says Liu with patriotic pride.
Early in Liu's professional career, he was trained as a high-jumper and won gold medals in the junior track and field competitions in Shanghai. However, he was rejected by the sports school because "he lacked potential." Liu was very frustrated and ready to quit the sport when he met Sun Haiping, who became his new coach. Sun Haiping insisted that Liu practice hurdles. After rigorous training with Coach Sun, Liu won nearly all the races in which he participated, leading to the history-making races in Athens and Lausanne.
Liu Xiang cherishes his family, friends, and home. Although his schedule requires frequent travel, the first thing he does after every race is call home to talk with his family. Liu's beloved grandmother passed away while Liu was participating in the 9th National Games, but he did not learn the sad news until he returned home after the race. Although he returned with a gold medal, he cried all night after learning of her death.
Liu Xiang's story is one of setting and achieving goals. He is looking forward to competing with other world track stars at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
NUTRILITE™, the world's leading brand of vitamin, mineral and dietary supplements*, is proud to be the sponsor of Liu Xiang, world champion and record-breaking hurdler.
* based on 2006 sales.