Chapter Fifty-Two: From Dawn to Dusk

Another 200 meters was measured.

This time, Rousseau finished in 21.30 seconds, while Tian Shihui clocked 21.35 seconds.

Their 200-meter times were enough to meet the selection standard for the Eastern Youth Games.

This made Lu Jinrong breathe a sigh of relief.

As for Rousseau, having first run 100 meters, then 200 meters, both with the “Acceleration” technique, he had used up 30 points of stamina, leaving him with 52 out of 100.

Everyone waited for Li Yan.

Li Yan was still scribbling and sketching, and it wasn’t until Dong Zijian went to remind him that Li Yan said, “Ah, sorry, I was caught up in a technical question.”

“Tian Shihui is qualified. He can stay with the team,” Li Yan announced.

“Yeah!” Tian Shihui punched the air in celebration.

“What about me?” Rousseau looked at Li Yan, his heart sinking. If both were qualified, he would have simply said they both stay. Why did he mention only Tian Shihui?

“Rousseau, yes? Hello,” Li Yan smiled as he stood before Rousseau.

For some reason, despite Li Yan’s smile, Rousseau felt no warmth from him, even a sense of aversion.

“I watched the footage of your race at the Southern Yue Provincial Games. I noticed your running style today is different from that day. Why did you change it?” Li Yan asked.

Ah… This coach noticed.

Just watching race footage and being able to tell the difference—impressive.

“That style is harmful to the body,” Rousseau replied.

“Harmful to the body,” Li Yan nodded. “Can you run 100 meters again with that style?”

Stamina, 52 out of 100.

Not quite enough.

Rousseau shook his head.

“In that case, I’m sorry, you’re not qualified," Li Yan said.

Upon hearing this, Lu Jinrong’s expression changed, and Rousseau felt his heart sink.

“Why? My results are similar to Tian Shihui’s,” Rousseau protested.

“I don’t need to explain to you,” Li Yan closed his notebook.

“Coach Li Yan, this isn’t fair, is it?” Lu Jinrong spoke up.

As a fellow coach, Li Yan was polite to Lu Jinrong.

“Fine. Tian Shihui’s current state still has room for improvement. Rousseau, in his current condition, I see no possibility of progress. Even if there is, it’s too late for the Eastern Youth Games. Rather than waste a spot and the national team’s resources, it’s better to let him go home,” Li Yan said.

Lu Jinrong frowned deeply at this, but had nothing to say. Every coach has their own standards, and since Li Yan held the power over the national team, his decision was final.

Lu Jinrong looked at Rousseau.

“What if I can run it?” Rousseau asked.

“Then you’ll be given a chance,” Li Yan replied.

“But my result may not be good. I’m tired,” Rousseau said.

“It doesn’t matter. Just do your best. Isn’t there a saying in your country, ‘Do your best and leave the rest to fate’?” Li Yan smiled.

…

Rousseau returned to the starting line.

He recalled the feeling in his body when he used “Burst.”

It wasn’t pleasant. Using “Burst” during running caused intense fatigue, especially after two bursts—it was almost unbearable.

Stamina now: 52 out of 100. One “Burst” uses 15 points; after the run, only 37 remain. Hopefully he wouldn’t faint.

“Ready—”

Dong Zijian blew the whistle, holding a DV camera, recording Rousseau and Tian Shihui’s training throughout.

“Go!”

Rousseau shot out.

…

His starting speed was mediocre.

Estimated visually, about 0.2 seconds late.

His starting posture was excellent.

His acceleration was textbook, but still a bit slow, perhaps due to his height. Unless exceptionally gifted, anyone at 1.82 meters faces this problem.

While the mainstream international view is that 1.82 to 1.85 meters is the golden height for 100 meters, Li Yan disagreed. The world record holders ranged from 1.60 to 2.03 meters. Li Yan believed there was no ideal height for the 100 meters, only the ideal physique.

His running form was good.

He was about to enter the sprint phase.

Hmm?

…

Li Yan noticed.

As Rousseau transitioned from mid-run to sprint, he suddenly accelerated again. This was highly unusual; sprinting is an anaerobic exercise, and even the strongest athletes only maintain peak speed for the first 80 meters. Li Yan had never seen a technique that allowed acceleration at this stage.

Woo—

Rousseau crossed the finish.

The hand-timed result was 10.38 seconds. With error adjustment, his 100-meter time should be around 10.60 seconds.

Not a particularly outstanding result.

But Li Yan liked it.

“You’re on the team,” Li Yan closed his notebook and said to Rousseau.

…

At this moment, Rousseau was struggling to stay upright, vision swimming with black spots. Hearing Li Yan’s words, he relaxed, nearly fainting, but Tian Shihui and Lu Jinrong hurried over to support him.

“Arrange a urine test for Rousseau,” Li Yan told Dong Zijian.

“Huh?” Dong Zijian was puzzled. “Does Tian Shihui need one?”

“No, just Rousseau,” Li Yan replied.

Why?

Li Yan’s decision left everyone confused.

But Li Yan offered no explanation, smiled at Lu Jinrong and left the training ground.

Lu Jinrong watched Li Yan’s departing figure, feeling inexplicably worried. He wanted to say something, but seeing Rousseau and Tian Shihui’s happy faces, he swallowed his words. The real test begins only after joining the team. These two boys must hang in there—under no circumstances should they quit.

…

That evening.

Li Yan received Rousseau’s urine test report.

It was expedited.

The results were “clean.”

Rousseau had not used stimulants.

Which made things even more interesting.

Another physical examination report arrived as well.

Li Yan enthusiastically examined both reports. Dong Zijian, who brought them, noticed that Li Yan’s computer was playing Rousseau’s race footage from the Southern Yue Provincial Games, paused at the moment.

“Coach, you’re very interested in Rousseau,” Dong Zijian said. “Do you have high hopes for him?”

“High hopes? No, I don’t,” Li Yan shook his head.

“Why?” Dong Zijian was surprised. If you don’t expect much, why study him?

“As a sprinter, Rousseau started professional training at eighteen, missing the optimal training period. With his physique, his lifetime best should be around 10.49 seconds. Yet, he reached that after only two months of training. What does that suggest?” Li Yan asked.

“So you think he’s on drugs,” Dong Zijian said.

“His sudden acceleration—rather than a running technique, it resembles an external stimulus. I’m curious to see how far this external stimulus can go,” Li Yan replied.

“So, you’re interested in him, but don’t believe in his potential?” Dong Zijian frowned. “If you think he has no sprinting potential, why let him join the team?”

“Some people are meant to be champions for life. Others only need one championship. But either way, it’s better than leaving empty-handed. Isn’t there a saying in your country, ‘Ten thousand years is too long, seize the day’?” Li Yan said.

Dong Zijian’s frown deepened. What exactly was Li Yan planning for Rousseau?