Students of sports majors face the tough reality of limited job opportunities after graduation
August 3, 2024 was a historic day at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris. China’s Zheng Qinwen claimed the nation’s first tennis singles gold medal—the first won by any Asian athlete—at the Olympics. Chinese netizens lost no time asking: How does one go about forging a tennis queen?
Zheng herself gave the answer in her post-victory interview: “My dad sold our house to fund my tennis lessons.” The internet speculates that Zheng’s family may have spent a whopping 20 million yuan in her meteoric career, maybe more. Zheng may have technically made history with her own tenacity and hard work, but it’s also a fact that her family gambled all on her success—probably to the envy of millions of other Chinese parents who sink astonishing amounts of time, energy, and funds into the long game of raising successful kids, but have to settle for far more modest prospects. This is especially true for parents who want to raise young athletes.
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