Cheng Fei facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cheng Fei
Full name	Cheng Fei
Nickname(s)	Fei Fei (菲菲)
Country represented	China
Born	(1988-05-29) May 29, 1988 (age 37) Huangshi, Hubei, China
Hometown	Wuhan, Hubei, China
Height	152 cm (5 ft 0 in)
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Level	Senior
Years on national team	2004–12 (CHN)
Head coach(es)	Lu Shenzhen
Assistant coach(es)	Liu Qun Lin
Former coach(es)	Yao Juying
Music	Don Quixote (2004), Dona Francisquita (2005–2007), Yellow River Concerto (2008)
Eponymous skills	Vault: Yurchenko ½ on into 1½ twists off (5.6)
Retired	June 14, 2012
Medal record Representing  China Women's artistic gymnastics Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 0 2 World Championships 5 1 0 World Cup Final 3 0 1 Asian Games 3 0 0 East Asian Games 2 1 0 Summer Universiade 1 1 0 Total 15 3 3 Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing Team Bronze 2008 Beijing Vault Bronze 2008 Beijing Balance Beam World Championships Gold 2005 Melbourne Vault Gold 2006 Aarhus Team Gold 2006 Aarhus Vault Gold 2006 Aarhus Floor Exercise Gold 2007 Stuttgart Vault Silver 2007 Stuttgart Team World Cup Final Gold 2006 São Paulo Vault Gold 2008 Madrid Floor Exercise Gold 2008 Madrid Vault Bronze 2004 Birmingham Floor Exercise Asian Games Gold 2006 Doha Team Gold 2006 Doha Vault Gold 2006 Doha Floor Exercise East Asian Games Gold 2005 Macau Team Gold 2005 Macau Floor Exercise Silver 2005 Macau Vault Summer Universiade Gold 2009 Belgrade Team Silver 2009 Belgrade Vault

Cheng Fei (Chinese: 程菲; pinyin: Chéng Fēi; born May 29, 1988) is a Chinese retired artistic gymnast. She is famous for her amazing skills on the vault and floor exercise. Cheng Fei won three World Champion titles on the vault between 2005 and 2007. She also became the World Champion on floor exercise in 2006.

She was a key member of the Chinese gymnastics team that won gold medals. This included the 2006 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Denmark and the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. She also helped her team win a silver medal at the 2007 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Germany.

About Cheng Fei

Cheng Fei grew up in Hubei Province, China. Her family was not very rich. Her parents hoped that gymnastics could help her have a better life. So, they started training her when she was just three years old. Her dad even practiced exercises with her every morning.

By age five, Cheng Fei won her first medal in a local competition. When she was seven, she moved to Wuhan. There, she joined a special sports program to train as a gymnast. Her first coach, Yao Juying, said Cheng Fei was very hard-working and focused. At age ten, she joined the Hubei provincial team. In late 2001, at 13, she joined the Chinese National Team. Her main coaches were Lu Shanzhen and Liu Qun Lin.

Cheng Fei was known for her powerful tumbling moves and exciting floor routines. Another famous gymnast, Sandra Izbașa, called her a perfectionist and a good friend. Cheng Fei stopped competing in June 2012. This was because of a serious leg injury she got while practicing on the floor.

Her Gymnastics Journey

Cheng Fei was especially good at the vault and floor exercise. In China, she won the national championship for floor exercise twice (2004–2005). She also won medals on vault and was the national champion on balance beam in 2004.

She also had great success around the world. At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, her team didn't win a medal. However, Cheng Fei performed very well. She even made it to the floor exercise final, finishing in 4th place. She also won a bronze medal at the 2004 World Cup Final for floor exercise.

The "Cheng" Vault

On November 23, 2005, Cheng Fei made history at the 2005 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Melbourne, Australia. She was the first gymnast to successfully perform a very difficult vault. This vault is now officially called "The Cheng" in the FIG Code of Points. It involves a round-off onto the springboard, a half-turn onto the vault, and then a 1½ somersault with a 540-degree turn. It's one of the hardest vaults in gymnastics!

World and Olympic Success

At the 2006 World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark, she was amazing on vault and floor exercise. Her strong performances helped China win the team championship. She also won individual gold medals for vault and floor exercise. Later that year, she won another gold medal on vault at the 2006 World Cup Final in São Paulo, Brazil.

In 2007, Cheng Fei continued her winning streak. She won vault, balance beam, and floor exercise titles at a World Cup event in Maribor, Slovenia. At the 2007 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, she was seen as the leader of the Chinese women's team. She won her third World title on the vault. The Chinese team finished 2nd overall.

Cheng Fei achieved her dream of competing at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. She was the captain of the Chinese team. She performed on vault, floor exercise, and balance beam. In the team final, she led China to win its first-ever Olympic gold medal in women's gymnastics team history! Individually, she won a bronze medal on vault and another bronze medal on balance beam. She finished 7th in the floor exercise final. After the Olympics, she received huge support from fans who recognized her amazing talent.

After the Olympics, she kept competing and winning. She won three gold medals at the DTG World Cup in Stuttgart (vault, floor, beam). Her last competition in 2008 was the World Cup in Madrid, where she won two more gold medals on vault and floor exercise.

In 2009, she competed at the Universiade in Belgrade. There, she won a team gold medal and a silver medal on Vault.

After taking almost two years off due to a leg injury, she returned in 2011. She competed in the Chinese National Championships. In April 2012, Cheng Fei won a gold medal in the vault final at the Zibo World Cup.

Sadly, Cheng Fei injured her Achilles tendon in June 2012. This meant she couldn't compete in the 2012 Chinese Olympic Team. She then announced her retirement from elite gymnastics. She decided to become a gymnastics coach instead.

Gymnastics Skills

Cheng Fei has a special skill named after her in the official gymnastics rulebook, the Code of Points.

Her Special Skill

Her Routines

As of 2008, Cheng Fei performed these impressive skills in her routines:

Floor Music

• 2003: Lord of the Dance from Riverdance
• 2004: Variations from Don Quixote
• 2005–2007: Mas Zarzuela
• 2008: Yellow River Concerto