Li Na is just such a cool character. Many people only regard Chinese athletes as sort of machines who go on their way but don't have personality. Li Na has proven this is not true. This actuallys resembles the experiences I've made in China by myself - most Chinese are actually really cool people.
Could you feel the bulk of the stadium was behind you tonight?
Her answer: "Yeah, yeah. I can hear a lot of Chinese fans, yeah. Yeah, and also I can see them with the China national flag everywhere. I was, Oh, looks like China Open!"
I really want to win the title to celebrate the wedding anniversary tomorrow, but I failed,said Li Na after the press,bursting into tears.She smiled to the audience. But breaking down when CCTV interviewed her.
She was crying hard when interviewed by her home media CCTV5. That's Li Na, who showed her positive side and smile to the world but can only released her emotions in the very corner. She is simply not an actress who put a show in front of crowd, which may have got more sympathy from the public.
Hahah she is so sweet even when she was crying during the whole interview. And funny still...
She started to tear up when the reporter talked about how happy/proud her second brother is, she was like "oh you gonna make me cry."
She talked about how she wanted to bring the winner's trophy to her husband as a wedding universality gift.
She said she gave it all and at the end, even though she lost, she still forgives herself because she did the best she could under the circumstances (injuries, 2 falls, etc).
The reporter said everyone she surveyed, talked to, her fans, etc didn't care whether Li Na lost or not. Her fans are proud that she stood on that battlefield and fought like a true champion.
Li Na said in the end, what maybe got to her is her thirst to win. Looking back, she said, "the match is over, I look at myself as my own hero. I am going to look forward and fight as hard."
She said Carlos said to her that he saw many positive things. She said that Carlos said nothing about the loss, but simply saw many great things and very proud of her.
The reporter said in the end, it was bad luck because of the injury. But Li Na said, "It's not so much as BAD LUCK as much as it was COMICAL"
On how the falls affected her during the match...
"Not too much - maybe just five seconds. I was a little bit worried when I fell and my head touched the ground. For two seconds I couldn't really see anything - it was totally black. When the physio came, she was like, 'Focus on my finger.' I started laughing. I was thinking, 'This is a tennis court, not a hospital!' She was like, 'Follow my finger. Follow my finger,' because I wasn't following, I was just watching her eyes. But then I did it. They did such a good job, checking everything was okay just in case."
I have always been a fan of her and will always love her. Even though she had fallen over and hit her head, she was still laughing :lol: no other player is as unique as Li.
Li Na is also a great ambassador for Chinese athletes. There is still quite a bit of prejudice against Chinese athletes (a continuation of the old mentality toward USSR athletes), seeing them as doped-up robots rather than individuals. I'm glad there is someone out there to show the world that yes, Chinese people have personalities, have a sense of humor, relationships, their own perspectives, etc.
Since most Chinese athletes don't have Na's ability to interview in English, the number of potential Li Na's gets lost.