Former Chinese women's volleyball captain Zhu Ting will return to the court in the FIVB Volleyball Women's Nations League in Macau, making her first appearance for the national team in more than two years.
The Olympic champion, who won gold in Rio in 2016, will also compete in the third and final race of the season in Hong Kong next month as China battles to qualify for this summer's Paris Games.
Zhu, who led her club team Paravolo Scandicci to second place in Italy's Women's Serie A1 last month, will soon resume training with the national team in Beijing and join her teammates in Macau later this month.
“I won't be able to play in the first leg in Brazil,” Zhu said. “The China Sports Administration and the team allowed me to adjust and recover at home and prepare for the second leg.”
China placed ninth at the Tokyo Olympics, their worst result in 10 Olympic appearances, and Zhu's performance was heavily criticized despite her injury.
After undergoing surgery on her right wrist in April 2022, the two-time World Cup winner moved to Italy and has been left out of the national team ever since.
“It has always been my desire to play for the national team and it is also a responsibility that falls on my shoulders,” she said. “My main goal now is to adjust my conditioning.” [before the Macau and Hong Kong leg].
“It's never easy for an athlete to get on the podium in sports, but there's an old adage on the team: 'Focus on the process,' so just pay attention to what you have to do.”
The 6ft 6in outside hitter, who will play for Italian champions Imoco Volley Conegliano next season, said a long-standing wrist injury could ultimately end his career.
“He's almost recovered now, but we need to prevent further injury,” she said. “If a wound occurs again in the same place, we cannot operate again.”
The 29-year-old wants to help China qualify for the Paris Games, with the Nations League being their last chance to qualify after finishing fourth in the qualifying tournament in Ningbo last September. Told.
Still, China is currently the top team in Asia and will likely move on to France if they do.
However, even if Japan completely overhauled its team, China could still qualify if it remained among the top three unqualified teams in the world rankings in the Olympic qualifying tournament, where they would be eligible to play in the Nations League. Grades are important.
