What was the most important thing in the world?
Different people would probably have different answers at different stages of their lives.
Money, power, the ideal partner, a dream career—
But for Coach Han, who had traveled thousands of miles south from the capital to Mangshi, Yunnan, there was only one thing that mattered most right now:
Finding promising road cyclists with formidable strength—preferably riders capable of challenging international-level cyclists.
He did not hold out much hope for the many riders within the provincial and municipal systems.
As a senior association official, he had already known exactly which domestic riders ranked among the first tier by the time he took up the baton as head coach of the national team.
He admitted that the country's strongest riders were indeed quite capable, especially the leading riders from teams like the Longjiang Team, Tianjin Team, Hunan Team, and Henan Team.
But there was ultimately still a gap between them and international riders.
Even if they gave everything in competition, they could only bring back a few UCI points from international events.
As for stepping onto the podium and winning medals for the country, the chances were simply too slim.
Never mind global competitions—even in Asian events, they still found it difficult to place near the front.
Recognizing reality was not pessimism.
On the contrary, as an association leader, he had to acknowledge the existing gap before he could raise the country's overall standard in road cycling.
That was why the association had begun making sweeping reforms to the competition format this year.
Still, when he learned during last year's National Championships that a previously unknown Zhejiang Team rider had suddenly emerged out of nowhere and claimed two titles, a special sense of anticipation had arisen in his heart.
That was because he