China hails Zheng ‘Queen Wen’ after she says tennis gold ‘brought glory to her ancestors’
- Zheng Qinwen says ‘glory of country is above self’, with historic tennis win more meaningful than a grand slam title
04:54
“I just made history”: China’s Zheng hopes to enjoy tennis more after Olympic gold win
Tennis gold medallist Zheng Qinwen has been praised for her patriotic spirit after saying she had finally “brought glory to her ancestors” by making history at the Paris Olympics.
The 21-year-old said winning the Olympics for her country was more meaningful than winning one of the sports grand slams; the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.
Zheng’s achievement was the first time any Chinese player has won the singles tournament at a Games, and the country’s first tennis gold ever, and Chinese social media was quick to hail her success.
Teammates Wang Xinyu and Zhang Zhizhen took silver in the mixed doubles the day before, and before that only women’s doubles pair Li Ting and Sun Tiantian had medalled. Winning silver in Athens in 2004.
“There is nothing comparable to this victory to me. To me and my family, the Olympics are far more significant than the grand slams,” she said. “In our hearts, the glory for the country is way above the self. I believe all Chinese have this mindset.”
Zheng beat Croatia’s Donna Vekic on Saturday, winning 6-2, 6-3 in a hard-fought gold medal match.
