This Swimmer Broke Taboos By Discussing Her Period After Her Olympic Race
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Fu Yuanhui is basically all of us when we’re PMSing.
You probably already know Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui for her charming post-race interviews and hilarious facial expressions. She's been a big breakout star of the Rio Olympics.
Stefan Wermuth / Reuters
On Sunday, Fu gave a particularly candid interview and mentioned that she got her period the night before the race.
The interview came after her team placed fourth in the 4×100 medley relay.
"I feel like I didn't swim very well today and I want to apologize to my teammates for that," Yuanhui said to the China Central Television reporter. The reporter then commented that Yuanhui seemed to have some stomach pain.
Gabriel Bouys / AFP / Getty Images
"Actually my period started last night," Fu said. "So I'm feeling pretty weak and really tired."
She continued, "But this isn't an excuse. At the end of the day, I just didn't swim very well."
You can watch the full interview with English subtitles here.
Alexander Nemenov / AFP / Getty Images
Many women in China only talk about their periods in private. Even then, it's more commonly referred to as "the great aunt" (in Mandarin, "Dà Yímā") or simply "that."
According to a 2015 survey, only 2% of Chinese women living in China use tampons. And many use little purses to keep them hidden.