Parents provide safety net for extreme athletes

Supportive stance

When he was in junior high school, Zhang Yunpeng was addicted to online games and showed no interest in studying, resulting in a poor academic performance. Although Zhang Ning complained to his son many times, the boy's attitude didn't change until parkour caught his attention.

"We thought that having a sports-based hobby was not a bad thing－at least he would have a healthy body and a regular life. He also shed his addiction to online games, so my wife and I acquiesced, but initially we showed no obvious opposition or support for him practicing parkour," Zhang Ning said.

After noticing that Zhang Yunpeng showed potential and achieved outstanding results in many competitions and exhibitions, the family gradually became more supportive and helped him financially, covering almost all his training expenses and attending events nationwide.

His mother relocated to Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi province, and rented a house near Shanxi Sports Vocational School, where Zhang Yunpeng studied, to take care of his diet and daily life until he graduated in 2012.

"Interest is the best teacher for children. We want our son to achieve something in sports by being a professional and a leading parkour master, so we supported him－especially his mother, who accompanied him for years. I also visited a lot to encourage him at that time," Zhang Ning said.

Zhou Ran, 68, whose son is a BMX rider from Beijing, said she cannot change his mind about the sport, although she once asked him to stop taking part.

Her son, Liang Wenqing, 36, has been hooked on BMX since 1999 and shows no signs of quitting. Zhou is impressed by Liang's persistence and thinks having an interest in sports is a good thing.

There was a period when Liang was obsessed with BMX and cared about nothing but training. However, many of his friends who had competed with him for several years quit the sport, which had a huge impact, Zhou said.

"I know that for a long time my son was quite lonely chasing his dream, so he needed my support, although he never said so," she said.

"He appreciates my support, which, in truth, I don't want to give because no parent wants their child to get involved in such a dangerous sport and worry about them getting hurt. But parents shouldn't interfere too much in their children's decisions either－we cannot force them to go on a route designed by us and leave them with no interests."

While Zhou offers almost no advice, she always listens when Liang talks about his life, work and training. She feels that chasing the BMX dream is hard and Liang needs a place to open his heart sometimes.

Liang coaches the Beijing Freestyle BMX team and other young riders. Zhou thinks her son's involvement could help to raise standards among China's BMX riders.

"If nobody promotes the sport, there will be less general support, and young people who love the sport wouldn't find a proper place to go or a group to practice with. That could mean they stop training," Zhou said.

"I am proud of my son－he makes great efforts in the sport and is persistent. I hope he will succeed. If a young man changes his mind day after day, he may achieve nothing. He is an adult, and I shouldn't have to tell him what to do. All I need to do is support him fully."