On November 18, Chinese sprinter Su Bingtian was appointed to the Athletes' Commission of World Athletics, the global governing body for the sport. It is the first time a Chinese track athlete will serve on the commission. For Su, it is recognition from World Athletics.

Recognition from World Athletics

Su Bingtian submitted his application to the commission during the 2019 World Athletics Championships held in Doha. The result reflected the joint decision of all participating players at the championships.

Despite the fact that Su Bingtian was competing in the 100m and 4X100m relay at the championships, he attached much importance to his campaign to join the commission. Before his Doha trip, Su prepared his campaign posters as well as some brochures. He handed them out among athletes after the 100m.

He will now become a voice for thousands of players worldwide, having been widely recognized by his peers.

The holder of the Asian 100m record of 9.91s

Su Bingtian joins five other athletes as new appointees to the commission. They are world 3,000m steeplechase champion Milcah Chemos Cheywa of Kenya, Syrian high jumper Majd Eddin Ghazal, Olympic triple jump gold medalist Olga Rypakova of Kazakhstan, South African sprinter Akani Simbine and 2019 world 100m silver medalist Marie Josee Ta Lou of Cote d'Ivoire. 

Su holds the Asian 100m record of 9.91 seconds. In 2015, he became the first Asian to break the 10-second sprint barrier. In 2018, Su broke the men's 60m Asian record three times; his 6.42s performance put him in the top five in history. For outdoor runs, his personal best of 9.91 seconds puts him among the world's elite.

Su's performance has also motivated China's young runners, even injected confidence into China's athletics. As a latecomer to the sport, China has made much progress in recent years. At the 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, China finished with 3 gold medals, 3 silver medals and 3 bronze medals, behind only world athletics powerhouse the United States, Kenya and Jamaica.

Aiming for Olympics glory

On Su Bingtian's personal account on Sina Weibo, China's Twitter-like social media platform, he expressed his gratitude and excitement.

"I will cherish the opportunity, fulfill my duties, live up to everybody's expectation and voice for the athletes!"

At the moment, Su is with the China track and field team's short race event in the United States in preparation for the winter training for the 2022 Tokyo Olympics.

Now into his 30s and affected by back injuries, Su didn't deliver a performance as outstanding as previous seasons. His season's best 100m performance was 10.05 and he didn't advance to the final in Doha. 

However, he didn't choose to terminate his career or even consider himself close to the end. And it is also why he has been chosen as a member of the Athletes' Commission by athletes around the world. His spirit of always making breakthroughs matters to the world of sports.

With the help of his American coach Randall Huntington, Su is still making his progress in sprinting. In June last year, Su twice ran 9.91s to equal the Asian record, setting another milestone.

He still hopes to continue this momentum through intensive and high-tech winter training.

"He has plenty of gas in the tank to get him to Tokyo. And I'm not killing him in training. So his body is not getting beat up. So that's preparing it for Tokyo," said Huntington.

From breaking the national record at the age of 22 to still rising up to challenges at the age of 30, Su Bingtian continues to make China proud.