China blind men's football team have finished fourth at the Tokyo Paralympic Games, matching their achievement in the Rio 2016 Paralympics. 

Although very young, the team established in 2006 has already scored some outstanding achievements. They won a silver medal at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics, a bronze medal at the 2010 World Championships and six Asian Championships. It can be said that they are the top in Asia and one of the best in the world. In this team, there is a dream chaser who is sunny and optimistic. His name is Liu Meng.

In 1995, Liu was born in an ordinary family in southwest China's Shuitangpu Village, Yunnan Province. He was born with congenital keratitis. In elementary school, Liu couldn't even see the words on the blackboard. When he was 13 years old, Liu could not see anything any more. Liu was sent to the Kunming School for the Blind and Dumb by his parents. According to the plan, he should have been a masseur after graduation, like his other classmates. He had never imagined that his destiny would be linked to football.

In school, Liu was very naughty and active. Once, he overheard the sound of mineral water bottles rolling on the ground. After that, he often played with his classmates by kicking plastic water bottles. This scene happened to be caught by Le Jiankun, the P.E. teacher of the school and the coach of Yunnan blind men's football team. Le told Liu that if he liked kicking, he would take him out of the school for a new thing. In this way, Liu came into contact with blind football for the first time. In 2009, Liu joined Yunnan blind men's football team, and his life has unlimited possibilities since then.

For the athletes with visual impairments, localization by sounds in the game of football 5-a-side is an essential skill. Except the goalkeepers, who have a normal vision, other players' vision is impaired. To be fair, players must wear blindfolds during the game. 

They distinguish the direction and location by the sound of a special football which has 6 built-in bells. They have to complete a series of actions such as running with the ball, passing to other teammates, and shooting in complete darkness. Teammates seek cooperation through screaming. The coach and goalkeeper are responsible for guiding the direction of the midfield and backfield. There is also a guider standing behind the opponent's goal to guide the offense. When moving, tackling or looking for a ball, the player must make "voy, voy, voy" or similar sounds to ensure safety.

"When they take every step, they must overcome the fear of unknown ahead." The words from the leader of China blind men's football team tell us the difficulties and challenges in the blind football. They can't see the path of the ball and can't estimate the speed of the ball. They can only feel it through touching the ball by their feet. The collision and injuries in training are frequent. Liu Meng once wanted to give up his football career and be an ordinary masseur because of serious injury.

"I was very young when I first played football. I was afraid then. I got hurt seriously in a game. That made me wonder what I could do if my feet has some problems when I already cannot see anything. Things could not get worse." However, at the thought of the joy that football brings to him and the time spent with his teammates, Liu returned to the field again.

Liu Meng said: "I am very happy and proud to be able to run freely, win honor for the country and represent so many disabled compatriots in the Games." From an ordinary blind school student to a member of the championship team, Liu has not only changed his own destiny, but also won many honors for the country.