WATCH: Zheng Qinwen's hometown of Wuhan commemorates her Paris Olympics gold win by flying thousands of glittering drones over Yangtze River in China

Zheng Qinwen's hometown of Wuhan celebrated her achievement of winning the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics by orchestrating a display of thousands of glittering drones soaring over the Yangtze River in China. Zheng made her Olympic debut this year and claimed the gold medal in her very first appearance at the Games.

Zheng was seeded sixth at the Olympic Games and began her campaign by defeating Italy's Sara Errani with a commanding score of 6-0, 6-0 in the opening round. She then overcame Dutch player Arantxa Rus with a score of 6-2, 6-4, and then triumphed over the 11th seed Emma Navarro 6-7(7), 7-6(4), 6-1 in the second and third rounds, respectively.

The World No.7 then went on to defeat Angelique Kerber 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(6) in the quarterfinals and caused a major upset by outplaying the top seed and tournament favorite, Iga Swiatek, in the semifinals with a score of 6-2, 7-5 to advance to the final.

At the summit clash, Zheng Qinwen defeated 13th seed Donna Vekic, with a score of 6-2, 6-3 in an hour and 45 minutes on Court Philippe Chatrier to secure the gold medal. This win marked China's first Olympic medal in women's singles and also the country's second Olympic gold medal in tennis overall .

Following her win over Vekic in the final of the 2024 Paris Olympics, Zheng Qinwen's hometown of Wuhan paid tribute to her by flying thousands of brightly lit drones over the Yangtze River in China.

Watch the video here :

Zheng Qinwen after her gold medal win in Paris: "Always wanted to become one of the Asians who can inspire young people"

Speaking to the media after defeating Donna Vekic to claim the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Zheng Qinwen described the feeling of becoming an "Olympic champion" as a tremendous relief, as if a heavy weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She also shared that the win also allowed her to feel mentally lighter

"When I became an Olympic champion, I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders . Mentally I feel much lighter to move forward. I can finally tell my family and my father, 'Come on, I've just made history,'" Zheng said via Puntodebreak (translated from Spanish).

Zheng stated that despite winning the gold medal she still has a long journey ahead of her as her ultimate dream is to win a Grand Slam title. She also expressed that she wants to be a source of inspiration for young people and ignite a passion for tennis within them.

"I've always wanted to become one of the Asians who can inspire young people and make them love tennis more, because tennis is a fantastic sport, especially for girls. You have to fight, you have to have strength, you have to be fast. I still have a long way to go, because winning a Grand Slam has always been my dream," she added

Zheng Qinwen was next scheduled to compete at the 2024 Canadian Open but withdrew from the WTA 1000 tournament due to fatigue.