Gold medalists Jiang Ranxin (left) and Pang Wei celebrate on the podium. Photo: VCG

When Chinese shooter Pang Wei stood on the Olympic podium to receive his 10-meter air pistol mixed team gold medal, his thoughts might have traveled back to the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

That summer, the quiet Olympic debutant finished first in the men's 10-meter air pistol event. It was the first gold medal earned by the Chinese shooting squad at the Beijing Olympics, after the Chinese female shooting team surprisingly lost in the women's 10-meter air rifle competition one day before. Pang's victory significantly boosted the morale of the Chinese squad.

History sometimes seems to repeat itself.

On Tuesday, when 35-year-old Pang and his teammate Jiang Ranxin were aiming at the targets in Tokyo, they carried the hope of Chinese fans after a gold-less day for China on Monday.

"It is not easy for them," said China's six-time shooting Olympian Wang Yifu of Pang and Jiang's performance, describing the 10-meter air pistol mixed team event with his thumbs up. "Especially after they were temporarily trailing their rivals."

Born in July 1986 in ­Baoding of North China's Hebei Province, Pang became interested in toy guns when he was a small boy.

His life changed in 2000, when a neighbor saw his toy guns piled as if in a weapon warehouse, and joked that perhaps he should take up shooting.

Apparently excited by the idea, the 14-year-old was soon sent to a local sports school in Baoding.

During years of practice, his parents had considered giving up, as Pang's academic studies were suffering. But his then-coach Zhang Guangwei opposed it. "I wouldn't object if other children's parents ask them to withdraw. But Pang Wei is such a talented shooter that it would be a pity if he gives up," explained Zhang.

The hard-working ­shooter was drafted into China's national team as a reserve in 2005, and won his first gold medal the following year at the World Shooting Championships in Zagreb, Croatia. The glory was so unexpected that Pang hadn't even prepared his uniform for the awards ceremony.

China's Jiang Ranxin (left) and Pang Wei compete in the 10-meter air pistol mixed team final during the Tokyo Olympic Games on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

In 2008, Pang not only grabbed his first Olympic gold medal, but also won the heart of Olympic champion Du Li, dubbed the "goddess of shooting" in China. Du fared badly in her first event and was depressed. "Pang gave me a hug, and that warmed my heart," Du later recalled.

They got married one year later to become the first Olympic champion couple in China. Du retired in 2016 with two Olympic gold medals, one silver and one bronze, and then became a coach in the Chinese national shooting squad, but Pang remained a competitor.

In recent years, he has suffered back-related problems, a result of his diligent practice year after year. Some Chinese local media quoted his coach Zhang Shengge as saying that shooters like him have to fire more than 40,000 bullets a year, and could train as many as 10 hours a day.

At London 2012, Pang finished fourth in the men's 10-meter air pistol. At Rio 2016, he clinched a bronze medal. For Tokyo 2020, where he is competing for the fourth time on the Olympic stage, he carried on.

'Really really hard'

The COVID-19 pandemic made the situation even worse. His father Pang Yanhong said that the athlete hadn't returned to his home in Hebei for more than a year.

"It was hard, really really hard," Pang told Xinhua in an interview in March. "But I am willing to persist for my goal and for our team. It is my wish to hear the national anthem in the Olympic stadium."

After the Beijing Olympics, Wang Yifu, then the head coach of the Chinese shooting squad, told Xinhua with a smile, "Seeing him [Pang] firing at the shooting range was like looking at my former self."

Pang didn't disclose when he would retire, but some media suggested that he might not continue after the Tokyo Olympics.

Like Wang, he would like to see someone taking over the baton. "I hope that I can see more young Chinese shooters coming up, so as to carry the flag of air pistol shooting for China," said Pang.