From our special correspondent in the air conditioning department of Castorama,
A little more, and he would have let out a big “suuuuuuuuuuuuu” in front of the red wall of Chinese supporters installed in the South Arena to witness his crushing victory. Fan Zhendong made short work of Félix Lebrun in the semi-final of the singles draw of the table tennis tournament at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (4 sets to 0) and allowed himself a “calma, calma” celebration to make you nostalgic for Cristiano Ronaldo’s finest hours at Real Madrid.
A club that the Chinese is a big fan of, as Félix recalled in the mixed zone after his defeat. “Since he is a fan of Real Madrid, he also often celebrates Bellingham. I think he likes to celebrate his victory, and he has the right. I would have celebrated too if I had won. It’s normal, I don’t blame him at all.”
Given the way the 17-year-old Frenchman played with the crowd throughout his career, it would have been very ungrateful to complain about the jubilation of his tormentor, who has always been the type to show his emotions. “Compared to other Chinese players, it’s true that he shows his emotions.” Perhaps this is also the result of a relatively tense context: the former world number 1 (for a cumulative 60 months) is the last representative of his country in the men’s singles draw. His qualification for the final was also a matter of national honour after the elimination of his compatriot and world’s best player, Wang Chuqin, whose racket was broken by a photographer before his surprising defeat against the Swede Truls Möregårdh (2-4) at the Olympics.
Victim of toxic idolatry, Fan had to take a break
Double world champion in individual, Fan Zhendong knows well the pressure of the heights of sport, as he also knows how to reject them. A prophet in his country, he recently denounced the perverse effects of idolatry on Chinese networks. He had notably complained on his Weibo account that someone had broadcast his personal identification number on the Internet, seriously infringing his right to privacy and his reputation as a citizen.
A story among many others. In 2023, Fan had reported to the police a woman who had stalked him to his hotel roomwhere she had finally entered, while he was preparing for a world tournament. Fan had to take a break after this episode. He came back strong. Too strong. “We came across a Fan Zhendong of the great days” analyzes without regret the captain of the French team, Nathanaël Molin. It was worth a little CR7 celebration.
