Charismatic Chinese Swimmer Breaks Taboo - Says It's Tough To Race With Menstrual Pain

Incredible as it may seem, it's rare for female athletes to talk publicly about whether their menstrual cycle affects their performance. In China, it's unheard of.

Trust Fu Yuanhui, Chinese swimmer and social media sensation, to break that taboo.

Fu had already emerged as one of the popular stars of the Rio Olympics for her disarming modesty, quirky facial expressions and sense of fun. On Sunday, she missed out on a medal in the women's 4-by-100-meter medley final, and was nowhere to be seen when her three teammates gathered for a post-race interview.

Fu, it turns out, was crouched behind a board, doubled up in pain. She later apologized to her teammates for not swimming well enough.

"It's because my period came yesterday, so I felt particularly tired," she said. "But this isn't a reason, I still didn't swim well enough."

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Her comments won her support on social media in China, and around the world.

"Hahaha talking about physical condition in such a calm and frank manner. Fu would be the first, right?," one user wrote on social media. "Fu is so frank! It was indeed an irresistible force. I believe fans all over the world will understand you," another wrote.

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But in China, where very few women use tampons, there was also some mystification.

"I had always been curious about how girls swim when they are periods. Now I know," another social media user commented.

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A 2015 industry survey by Cotton Inc. estimated that only around 2 percent of women in China use tampons - compared to between a half and two-thirds of women in the West. In China, where women mostly use pads, many said they did not know how to use tampons or had never heard of them, according to the survey.

Fu is not the first athlete to mention period pain. Last year, Britain's top female tennis player Heather Watson blamed "girl things" for the her first-round defeat at the Australian Open, according to the BBC.

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Britain's middle distance runner Jessica Judd said her running times can vary significantly according to where she is in her cycle, although marathon runner Paula Radcliffe broke a world record in Chicago in 2002 despite starting her period that day, the BBC reported.

Nevertheless, the subject is rarely discussed in public, which may have something to do with the preponderance of male coaches in sport, or simply with society's attitudes in general.

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Fu first shot to Internet stardom in Rio when she qualified for the final of the women's 100-meter backstroke, crying out in surprise and delight, and showing some disarming modesty.

"Wow! I was so fast! I am very happy!" she said, saying she was using all of her "mystic energy" to produce her best performance. Asked if she held high expectations for the finals, she answered: "Not at all! I am already very pleased!"

China's Global Times newspaper said Fu's "sweet and honest image" was a welcome change from Chinese athletes' usual "dedication to medals, and the burdensome obsession of the country and its fellowmen with Olympic glory."

In the past, only gold was good enough for Chinese athletes in the eyes of the public, as the country tried to rid itself of the label of the "sick man of Asia," the paper said, but attitudes are now changing.

"Fu seems to care less about winning a gold medal than breaking her own record, which is exactly the spirit of the Olympic Games," it wrote.

Come the final, and Fu made even more waves, when she won a bronze in the final - but only found out during a post-race interview.

"What? Third?!" Fu stammered. "I did not know ..."

Before finding out she won, Fu had blamed her "short arms" for not placing higher. But her delight on being told she had won bronze was infectious.

"Well, then I think that's not bad at all!" she said. Her smile "lit up the deck" as she later took a victory lap with the bronze medal, the Associated Press reported.

Fu's facial expressions have already spurred memes, emoji and other online activity in China and beyond, and her followers on social media have exploded to around 6 million from 56,000.

© 2016 The Washington Post

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)