"Success is not the sole criterion for determining whether a person is a hero" -- the ancient standard still influences today's Chinese, including President Xi Jinping, when evaluating a person.
The idiom was cited and adapted by Xi during his meeting with members of the Chinese delegation to the Rio Olympics in 2016.
"Winning is not the sole criterion for determining whether a person is a hero. Yet at the same time, a hero should have the courage to strive to be first," Xi said, adding that athletes who had not won medals but have the courage to excel, are equally worthy of respect and applaud.
During a meeting with the International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach before the opening of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, Xi reaffirmed this philosophy: "Compared with how many medals Chinese athletes win during the Games, I care more about the impetus and vitality it (the Games) will inject into us in the future."
The wisdom behind this idiom is not only embodied in sportsmanship but also adopted by the country in pursuing development.
"Only through win-win cooperation can we make big and sustainable achievements that are beneficial to all. The old mindset of a zero-sum game should give way to a new approach of win-win and all-win cooperation," Xi said at the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2015.