Zhang Mingyu of China competes at the Pentathlon World Championships Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province, June 15, 2024. /CFP

Zhang Mingyu of China secured qualification for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games after winning the modern pentathlon women's individual gold medal at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, in September 2023.

Zhang will be on her second Olympic journey in Paris and the only one of Team China to participate in the women's event.

"I may feel lonely because I will be the only woman for the modern pentathlon competition in Paris." Zhang told China Media Group (CMG).

Having suffered a series of injuries, Zhang was not in her best form in the first half of 2024 and didn't perform well at the Modern Pentathlon World Cup as a result. Then in mid-June, she participated in the World Championships in Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province, to compete with the world's top modern pentathletes.

"Since I was already qualified for the Olympics, I considered the World Championships an opportunity to test myself, to see how I perform in a noisy environment in front of crowd," Zhang said. "I also wanted to see the gap between me and the overseas top athletes so I can have more specific fronts to work on in the final month before the Olympics begins."

As a two-time Asian Games gold medalist, Zhang's good performance came from her close attention to every detail of her practice as well as competition.

"Sprinting has been my weakness, so I have been focused on that in recent months," Zhang told CMG. "When I surpassed an opponent, I wanted to know by how much I did it and if she was close to catching up with me."

When asked about her goal for Paris Olympics, Zhang said that she wants to do her best, and, if possible, surpass her regular best.