Chinese gymnast Zhou Yaqin has won hearts not only with her impressive silver medal at the Paris Olympics 2024 but also with her humility. After achieving success on the global stage, the 18-year-old returned to her hometown of Hengyang City in Hunan Province to help her parents at their restaurant. Located on Furong Road in the Nanyue District, the restaurant became a focal point of a viral video showing Zhou serving customers, highlighting her commitment to family despite her recent Olympic victory.
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Zhou earned her silver medal in the women’s balance beam event at the Paris Olympics, scoring 14.100 in the final, just 0.766 points behind her qualification score of 14.866. She was narrowly beaten for gold by Italy’s Alice D’Amato. Her charming moment during the medal ceremony, where she playfully bit her medal for the cameras, also went viral, endearing her further to fans worldwide.
The video of Zhou assisting at her parents’ restaurant prompted praise from netizens for her down-to-earth nature and dedication, applauding her for staying grounded despite her Olympic success. Besides her silver medal in the balance beam, Zhou also competed in the all-around and women’s floor individual events at the Olympics, though she did not secure additional medals. Earlier this year, she also won a silver medal at the World Gymnastics Championships.
Zhou was one of five Chinese gymnasts at the Paris Olympics, along with Luo Huan, Ou Yushan, Qiu Qiyuan, and Zhang Yihan. The Chinese women’s gymnastics team earned two medals: Zhou’s silver in the balance beam and Qiu Qiyuan’s silver in the uneven bars.