Torch star Xu gets fired up for Games

Using a high-tech prosthetic arm, Xu Jialing lit the cauldron at the opening ceremony of the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou on Sunday — a moment the young Chinese swimmer says she will cherish for the rest of her life.

Xu hopes she can also ignite the dreams of more para athletes, encouraging them to chase their goals.

"I always strive to compete at major events. Like all athletes, I want to produce the best result I can. It is tough for any para athlete at the very start of their career, and the training can be challenging," the 21-year-old said.

"I feel my life is wonderful now, and physically I'm as strong as anyone else my age. For all the people who have been supporting and following us, I just want to tell them, just treat us like any other athletes who are fighting to achieve their goals."

She says being chosen as the final torchbearer of the Asian Para Games was "unexpected". After using a high-tech prosthetic arm to carry the torch, Xu added she was delighted to show the world how technology can help people with disabilities.

"At the very beginning, I just knew that I would be one of the torchbearers in the final relay of the opening ceremony, but I did not know that I would actually light the cauldron. When I was told I would have that honor, I felt deeply proud," said Xu, whose left arm was injured in a 2006 car accident when she was 4 years old.

"The prosthetic arm is actually controlled by my mind, as it captures my body's neural signals. For years, I had been getting used to life after amputation, but with the high-tech prosthetic arm I can hold the torch, grab a glass of water and unscrew bottles. I have to say that the arm is very cool."

Two years after the accident, Xu began her swimming career. In 2016, at the age of 14, she competed at her first Paralympics in Rio, where she won gold in the women's 100m butterfly S9 and collected two bronze medals, in the women's 4x100 freestyle relay 34 points and the individual 400m freestyle S9.

At the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta, Xu collected a huge medal haul — seven golds and two silvers. After missing out on the podium at the Tokyo Paralympic Games, Xu bounced back earlier this year, with a world-title win in the women's 100m butterfly S9 in Manchester, England.

"When I won gold in Rio, everything was going almost too smoothly. It even felt like it was not that hard to top the podium, but in Tokyo I failed to win any medals," said Xu.

"I was disappointed, but the results were expected as I was not in good form at the time. Since then, I've always told myself to keep a good mindset and to try my best in each training session and competition. Ultimately, if you produce your best effort, you can accept any result."

Outside the pool, Xu loves traveling around the world but, at the same time, she is also studying sports science at Beijing Sport University.

"It's great to return to school now. Now I have new knowledge and it helps me to better understand the sport that I love," she added. "It is a great opportunity to grow."