There are many ways to nail down a chance to raise questions to the Chinese premier at his once-a-year news conference, and snatching the microphone is one of them.

The Great Hall of the People's Golden Hall was filled with the smell of gunpowder on Sunday morning, when 800 reporters from China and abroad waited for the premier to address concerns over the country's future.

I got up at 5 am, took a bite of breakfast and hoped to grab a perfect seat in the upcoming war of media reporting. I was lucky to touch down on a seat in the first row, although there were dozens of reporters who had arrived earlier.

True, the front row does not necessarily lead to more success. A great deal of careful preparation, some extra boldness and a dose of luck make up the chance to be selected.

The reporter from Austria TV got his piece of prime time in an extraordinary way. He snatched the microphone that was handed to his neighbor, a reporter from Agencia EFE, the Madrid-based news agency. It all took place in a few seconds, even before the Spanish reporter was able to figure out what had happened.

The atmosphere in the hall became more intense as the two-hour session was coming to an end. Reporters from Hong Kong, known for their loud voices during news conferences, again employed their ability. A reporter from the city sitting behind me got an extra chance to raise questions after the news conference was closed.

It is not the first time that speaking out loud works. During last year's two sessions, the CPPCC spokesman answered an extra question about the investigation against former security chief Zhou Yongkang. The spokesman answered "You know what I mean", a sentence soon interpreted on the Internet as a kind of confirmation.