China’s Most Lovable Olympian Admits She’s on Her Period After Poor Performance

Fu and her teammates placed fourth in the women’s 4x100m medley relay on Sunday, just missing out on a medal. When the team was getting interviewed after the match, Fu was nowhere to be found. Turns out she was crouched behind a board wincing in pain.

When a journalist asked whether she was okay, Fu first apologized to her team-mates for not performing well before breaking the “period taboo”. *cue gasps all around*

Fu’s comments sparked a tidal wave of support from Chinese netizens:

“I really admire Fu Yuanhui, for swimming while she was on her period – women can be affected during their periods, especially with period pain… she felt guilty for coming fourth, but Fu Yuanhui we’re still very proud of you,” wrote one user on Weibo (via BBC).

Unlike the U.S., tampons are not widely used in China. In fact, only 2% of women in China use tampons compared to 42% of women in the US, according to an industry survey. Some Chinese women have even been told to avoid tampons because it could make them lose their virginity. *cue eye rolls all around*

Fortunately, this could all change soon as China is planning on launching a domestic tampon brand.

If you can understand Chinese, you can watch the full interview on Miaopai.