Ding was announced as one of the nine individuals that were elected to the Committee after athletes got the opportunity to cast their vote during the Asian Games, which finished yesterday. 

It was the first time the OCA had held an election for the Athletes’ Committee.

Ding saw off competition from Chinese Taipei swimmer Huang Mei-chien for the female spot in the East Asia Zone after receiving 56.97 per cent of the vote.

"I have participated in so many major competitions, faced so many people, but today there was indeed a moment when my mind went blank," said Ding in a report by Chinese official state agency Xinhua.

"For the past ten-plus days, I have been busy with the election at the Asian Games.

"Just like everyone else, I learned about my election only a few minutes ago."

Ding claimed team gold and women’s singles gold at the London 2012 Olympics before securing titles in both team and singles events at Rio 2016.

She also won eight World Championship titles and reached world number one in 2019 before retiring in 2021.

Since then, Ding has secured a role as a teacher at Peking University where she earned a master’s degree and became a member of both the OCA and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

She now wants to inspire other people on how to transition into roles outside of sport.

"Every athlete must face retirement and role transition, so I hope that in the future, I can not only help more athletes pursue their dreams, but also provide more support in their lives and future choices," added Ding.