Finding a meaningful story：A Narrative Study of Chinese Weightlifting

Abstract

Weightlifting is the traditional strength of China, and the Chinese weightlifting team occupies a pivotal position in the international weightlifting arena by virtue of its brilliant achievements in major international events. However, the records of the origin and development of weightlifting are limited. Modern weightlifting emerged in Western Europe and the United States, and has been introduced to China since the 19th century. Even though many surviving magazine articles, oral and video interviews, and small-circulation films and documentaries present the history of the sport, weightlifting has not been documented as a coherent subject of sport history, and few narratives about the sport behind it exist. This paper draws on literature on sport, memory, and oral history to conduct interviews with those who lived through the sport of weightlifting in order to find signs of the processes by which interviewees derived meaning from their experiences. Oral history, as an influential act