User:Usmle2cs/Great Leap Backward

The Great Leap Backward refers to an event during the 1959 edition of the National Games of China during which Mao Zedong, leader of the People's Republic of China, slipped and fell backwards while attempting his third long jump, resulting in a score of zero. The name itself represents the Western parody of Mao's economic program The Great Leap Forward, since the event was criticized by the Western world as “a striking collapse of communism”. The term "Great Leap Backward" rarely appears in Chinese culture; it is usually replaced with Mao's aforementioned economic plan, as the event was generally viewed positively in Chinese media until his death in 1976.

Background

The National Games of China were originally called the Chinese National Games, which were first held in 1910 during the Qing dynasty. In 1959, when the competition redefined itself into the “National Games of the People's Republic of China”, the first edition of the games was held in Beijing, where upwards of 10,000 athletes competed in 42 different sports.

Mao Zedong viewed the games as a way to generate widespread nationalism throughout the public, especially useful as the games occurred during Mao’s economic upheaval. The participants of the games were representatives of each individual Chinese province, with the exception of the People’s Liberation Army, which was intended as a paragon of the Chinese government’s strength relative to the citizens. Many western scholars speculate that upwards of 80% of the events were fixed to allow the Liberation Army to accumulate more medals and therefore accumulate more positive opinion among the public.

Mao Zedong himself announced that he would be participating in various events, most notably the long-distance swimming events and long jump. Upon hearing the announcement, Vice Chairman Liu Shaoqi visited Mao’s estate one evening, worried that Mao’s participation would end in failure and subsequent embarrassment for the government. Mao was reportedly drunk at the time, and struck Liu Shaoqi across the face with a container of Maotai, immediately collapsing onto the floor afterwards in exhaustion. This incident did not dissuade Mao from participating, as he viewed his own alcoholism as a sign of virility and therefore was confident in his abilities during the National Games. Notably, modern scholars that have examined Liu’s diary speculate that this incident could have been the beginning of Liu’s future conflict with Mao, as both persons began to distrust each other from that point on.

Leadup to the event

With widespread anticipation from the Chinese public, the games commenced on the 13th of September, 1959, with an opening ceremony designed to praise the Chinese government. One spectator reported seeing a "thousand dancers who lined up and formed Mao's facial outline", gathering loud cheers from the audience.

Mao, swimming in Yangtze

The events Mao intended to participate in were purposefully placed in the beginning of the games, intending to function as a symbol for enthusiasm for the following events, therefore increasing viewership and public engagement. Mao was supposedly confident in his skills in both swimming and long jump: he is reported to have swum the Yangtze over 17 times in his lifetime, while his experience in long jump is relatively unknown.

Initially, this objective was successful, as Mao surged through the preliminaries for the 10 km and 25 km swimming events, and eventually winning both competitions in dominant fashion. As one spectator wrote, “No one in the history of the National Games of China has ever won so many medals”, which was technically true, since at that time, those two events were the only ones finished. Upon collecting his two gold medals and preparing for the long jump, Mao Zedong showered his government advisors with affection and praise. A reporter near Mao wrote of his “radiant effervescence” and the “glowing sheen” of his skin. This confidence is reported to have brought a negative effect upon Mao’s future performance in the games, as he “could think of nothing but the prospects of another gold medal”.

Event

Mao’s first jump was average, enough to place him fourth in his heat. Since there were two attempts left, Mao showed no signs of unhappiness; rather, he took the opportunity to wave at spectators and intimidate his opponents. His second jump fell a little short of his first, as onlookers began to question Mao’s athletic prowess in “hushed tones”. On his third attempt, perhaps under too much pressure, Mao lost his balance while sprinting to the sandpit and fell onto his stomach with his head behind the measuring line, resulting in a score of 0 meters.

Consequences

Mao himself suffered no visible injury other than a discolored cheek, although the emotional effect is reported to have been “long-lasting”. The long jump was eventually won by an unknown male athlete from Guangdong Province, however his mysterious disappearance two weeks later has led scholars to believe that Mao had ordered his execution. An immediate effect of the incident was China’s decreased influence in the Olympic sports domain. For a decade, Chinese athletes would face a great deal of sarcastic references to Mao’s jump during international sporting events. As a result, China did not participate in the Olympic Games through the years of 1956-1980.

Due to pervasive censorship and propaganda, the incident was generally regarded in China as an example of Mao’s humility and generosity, as Mao was described to have “courteously given his fellow Chinese citizens a victory when he could have achieved individual glory.” In his private sphere, Mao was sullen and downcast; it is speculated that this long jump experience brought Mao to relentlessly pursue more aggressive Communist policies as part of his Great Leap Forward. Along with McCarthyism in the 1940-50s and the failure of Stalin’s Soviet Union, the Great Leap Backward also served to undermine the legitimacy of Communism in the Western world. It was seen as a failure for Mao Zedong’s leadership, and in the same respect, a disaster for Communism in China. Xi Jinping argues that this difference in opinion contributed to the Chinese continuation of Communism throughout the 21st century.

Upon hearing of this incident, US president Dwight D. Eisenhower reportedly “rolled on the floor of the Oval Office for five minutes, straining to catch his breath.” He then commented on the physical shape of Mao’s body, drawing similarities to a pig and cow. The news of the Great Leap Backward spread throughout Western media, with local newspapers even publishing front page articles on the fiasco. Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev penned a letter to Mao, allegedly filling five pages with devastating remarks, although the contents of the letter remain unknown.

Ultimately, the dichotomy of public opinion would not be addressed until Mao’s death in 1976. While the fear of punishment due to government criticism still played a major part in Chinese society, the shift in attitude of Chinese citizens saw Mao’s long jump transform from an example of idolatry to a longstanding joke in Chinese folklore.