A legion of foreign coaches has conquered cultural and acclimation difficulties to help Chinese athletes shine on the world stage.

As China's track cycling duo Gong Jinjie and Zhong Tianshi powered their bikes toward the finish line in the women's team sprint final at the Rio Olympics on Friday, a burly man in a red T-shirt stood out in the packed Rio velodrome. He was yelling loudly, his focus locked on the two Chinese riders.

Seconds later, the tension on his face turned to ecstasy. He pumped both fists into the air to celebrate when the Chinese duo passed the finish line ahead of the Russian team - making history to bring the first gold medal in Olympic cycling to the country known as the "kingdom of bicycles".