531: I love you 531: I love you Track and field competitions have always been a big source for gold medals, with events like the 100, 200, 400, high jump, long jump, and shot put.
After having dinner with the two girls, Li Yueyue and Liu Ran had nothing to do in the afternoon, so they went to the female dormitory to sleep.
They just needed to show up at their class’s gathering point when the afternoon competition started.
Just as they were about to enter the girls’ dorm, Wang Xuewei called Liu Ran, asking her to make sure she was on time for the gathering point in the afternoon, and then wanted Liu Ran to pen some rallying words for the literature department, something like: Today, with our flag flying high and the sun shining bright, under the guidance of the state and the care of the school, our classmate xxx, participating in xxx competition, embodies the sportsmanship of ‘friendship first, competition second.’ Liu Ran, having some of the best grades in the class and now also a sign-holding leader, was naturally asked to write it.
After Liu Ran hung up with a few vague acknowledgments, she turned to Zhao Tiezhu with a smile and said, “Brother Song, you’ll have to find a place to rest by yourself at noon.”
Song Yun shook his head.
What was there to rest for now?
He still had a lot to deal with, like, for instance, attaching this 5213838 number to his body.
This was a very serious issue.
Zhao Tiezhu held the number against his chest and felt that it practically screamed, “I love you 3838,” as if bragging about it proudly.
But if it were hung on the back, then it seemed as if he was too pleased with himself for being a 38.
Who the hell gave the brother such a number!
Song Yun returned to the classroom feeling frustrated.
There were still quite a few people in the classroom.
The kid Xie Yu was flaunting his number tag on his chest to everyone around, as if afraid they wouldn’t realize he was such a fool, and the sports committee member had gone out to buy a whole crate of Red Bull.
There must have been about forty students from the literature department taking part in the afternoon’s competition, so the drinks were piled up all over the ground.
Time quickly reached 2 p.m., and when Song Yun and Xie Yu’s group arrived at the main stadium, Li Yueyue and the others were already sitting on chairs.
There were a few tables set up in front of them with pens and paper, probably for the accolades to the spirit of youth later on.
Song Yun placed the drinks on the grass and then sat down next to Li Yueyue.
“You have your 3000 meters this afternoon.
Remember the promise, don’t lose,” Li Yueyue said with a smile.
“How could I possibly?
It’s only 3000 meters.
When I was running abroad, I could go a day and a night without rest and it was nothing.”
After 2:30, the track and field competition officially began.
Today was mainly about the preliminaries, selecting the top competitors for the semi-finals the next day, and then the finals the next day after that, all according to the standards of the Olympics, considering there were several thousand participants.
As for middle-distance events like the 3000 meters, the final began right away, simply because too few people had signed up and nobody wanted to run in the scorching heat.
There were only about twenty people signed up for the 3000 meters.
Song Yun took a look around and noticed Yu Feng was also in the group, even making a throat-slitting gesture at him.
Most of the other competitors were African students, so the school had them all run together, regardless of whether the track could hold them all because, in a 3000-meter race, no one cared who was in front when starting.
Bang, the starting gun fired, and the race began.
The 300 meters is not like a 100-meter sprint where the lanes and positions matter much.
A bunch of runners stand there, pull a starting line, and once the gun fires, they can start running.
Song Yun began the race following the main pack.
Long-distance running actually involves quite a bit of strategy.
Many people might think you need to lead all the way to be impressive, but that’s a big mistake.
Usually, during the first few kilometers, those leading aren’t the ones who win in the end; being tactical and following from behind is the way to go.
It’s said to save energy and be beneficial in some way or another.
Song Yun kept tight behind the pack of black runners.
Some of them looked at this yellow-skinned Shen Zhou person with surprise—skinny and small, he did look like a long-distance runner.
They smiled kindly at Song Yun, and he returned the gesture with a smile of his own.
Not all foreigners are so arrogant.
Song Yun didn’t hang his number tag like the others but instead had put it in his pocket.
After all, it could be taken out and hung up when the race was nearly over.
Li Yueyue stood by the track watching Song Yun.
The more she watched, the stranger it seemed until, upon closer inspection, she realized that Zhao Tiezhu, running 3000 meters, hadn’t worn proper sports shoes but casual shoes with holes.
Sunnan University’s field was 300 meters a lap, so a 3000-meter race required ten laps.
Since the first lap wasn’t done yet, Li Yueyue and Liu Ran didn’t need to hurry over and bring Song Yun water.
Song Yun kept a steady pace with the main group.
By the end of the first lap, those who dashed out fast at the start had already slowed down.
It’s a big mistake in long-distance running to burst out too fast at the beginning, leading to excessive energy consumption and later fatigue.
By the third lap, many who were at the front originally had fallen back, while the leading black runners were still going at the same pace as when they started—only now they were leading the group instead of being in the middle.
Song Yun was no exception.
Entering the fifth lap, many who had started ambitiously and run joyfully were now worn out, and some with not-so-great stamina were becoming the second team.
The first team had only a few people left.
One was the black runner who had smiled at Song Yun earlier, one was Song Yun, and another was an American.
“Hey, little yellow skin, I can’t believe you’re keeping up with us,” the blonde American exclaimed in surprise.
Song Yun cast a cold glance at the American.
What era was this still with racial discrimination?
Seeing that Song Yun ignored him, the American’s expression darkened for a moment before he started to quicken his pace.
He had been running third, behind the black runner and Song Yun, but as he sped up, he moved beside Song Yun as if to overtake him.
However, just as he reached Song Yun’s side, for some unknown reason, the American stumbled and collided with Song Yun.