(September 1958 to July 1966)
(A Conversation with Athletes After Swimming on the Twelfth Day of an Unknown Month in 1958)
Mao Zedong: Shouldn’t the whole country aim to have 300 million people learn how to swim? Is that feasible?
Answer:
Except for those under seven and over sixty, everyone else can learn. Thirty million people—that’s certainly possible!
Mao Zedong: Yes, absolutely possible.
(After asking about the athletes’ educational backgrounds and learning that they had all completed specialized studies and possessed considerable knowledge,)
Mao Zedong: You’ve learned through formal training, but you must work hard! You’re young people, aren’t you? Time is on your side! You should also go among the masses to continue learning.
Don’t just keep practicing in the swimming pool—it’s too small. Swimming back and forth there only gets you so far. You should go out into rivers and lakes more often to train.
The Yangtze River—people say it’s huge—but actually, being big isn’t something to fear. You wouldn’t let me swim across, yet here I am, having already done it! Isn’t U.S. imperialism also very powerful? We stood up to it once, and nothing terrible happened. So some things in this world may seem large, but they’re really not scary.
Four
Swimming is an excellent sport and should be encouraged.
Five
Swimming is a form of struggle against nature; you should go out into great rivers and seas to toughen yourselves.
Only by knowing how to rest can one endure for long.
The times have changed: men and women are equal now. Whatever men can accomplish, women can accomplish as well.
(Mao Zedong swam ahead with light, effortless strokes and humorously asked a comrade,)
Mao Zedong: Do you think it’s people who fear water, or water that fears people?
Answer: People fear water?
Mao Zedong: In my view, it’s water that fears people—water dreads being oppressed by us.
/\
Swimming in rivers and streams presents opposing currents, which can strengthen one’s will and courage.
With so many rivers and lakes across the country, couldn’t we make use of them all for swimming? And with a population of 600 million nationwide, couldn’t 300 million people take up swimming?

Archival Photo
In 1958, Mao Zedong was aboard a boat with his swimming companions—the coaches and athletes.
On September 14, 1958, before his swim, Mao waved to cheering crowds from the Hanjiang ferry near the Wuchang Shipyard.

司
In September 1958, after swimming across the Yangtze River, Mao rested on a boat.

Comments on a Report Regarding Steel Production
(September 30, 1958)
To Comrade Peng Zhen III:
This document No. 121 could perhaps be rewritten as a news report and published in the newspaper. Please handle it as you see fit.
[1]
Peng Zhen, then Secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee.
Mao Zedong
The Thirtieth Day of the Month
[2]
Refers to a report submitted by the Henan Provincial Committee of the CPC to the central authorities on September 25, 1958, concerning steel production. The report stated that steel production in our province had developed into a large-scale mass movement, leaping to a new stage. Our province’s original steel-making foundation was very weak; last year it produced only 3,000 tons of crude iron, and in early September this year the average daily output was still only 568.9 tons. However, thanks to the tireless day-and-night efforts of the entire provincial populace, starting from September 10th the daily output reached one thousand tons, and by September 15th, overcoming numerous difficulties, 18,944 tons of pig iron were smelted in a single day. From the 15th to the 22nd, a total of 67,217 tons of pig iron were produced, truly establishing a massive, party-wide, all-people, army-and-civilian-led campaign to vigorously develop steel production. Currently, the entire Party and people are pressing forward on this victorious momentum, expanding their achievements and striving to launch “satellites” of 30,000 to 50,000 tons of daily output by National Day. The report also outlined four key lessons:
(1) Liberating thought, clarifying direction, and adopting correct principles and policies are the primary keys to ensuring the success of the Great Steel Leap;
(2) The Great Steel Leap is the result of political leadership, full-party mobilization, elevating communist ethos, fully engaging the masses, and thoroughly implementing the mass line;
(3) Continuous突击attacks and the successive launching of several major steel “satellites” are effective methods for mobilizing the masses and organizing peaks in steel production;
(4) The crucial factor in truly propelling steel production forward lies in strengthening Party leadership, concentrating resources, and prioritizing key areas.
October 3, 1958
The People’s Daily, under the headline “The More Thoroughly the Masses Are Mobilized, the Faster Steel Production Advances,” published a revised version of this report.