French tennis player Michaël Llodra (ranked No. 41 in the world) recently pulled off a Vincent Chin-esque double-whammy of racial insensitivity, after he reportedly screamed "Fucking Chinese!" at a Korean-American woman in attendance during his first round match against Ernests Gulbis at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. He has since taken to his website to apologize in a classically non-apologetic fashion, by qualifying that he is not a racist, and that he lost his temper because the Indian Wells court being uncooperative, and also because tournament organizers scheduled his matches poorly.
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Results tagged “tennis”
French tennis pro Michaël Llodra apologizes for screaming "F**king Chinese!" during match
Li Na: I'm not here because of my country
"I'm just a tennis player. I'm not here at the open for my country. I just want to play my tennis. It's my job to do my very best. If in the past I've had to lie, now I want to say that actually I haven't been comfortable doing that. Because if you've lied your first lie, then you'll have to lie many more times to cover up that first lie. And I really don't want to do that anymore. I know many people are going to start hating me for speaking the truth, but does it matter anymore? I've finally found my own happiness."
Video: Tennis star Li Na's new ad for Nike China
"Toronto, Cincinnati, New York, Tokyo, Beijing, Istanbul."
Weekendist: TICT rooftop party, Rugby World Cup quarter finals, and Shanghai Masters kicks off!
For those of you headed back to work this weekend, there's plenty going on to make you wish you weren't (or to keep you hungover at the office.) If live music isn't your thing, you can hit up TICT's delayed rooftop finale party, the Shanghai Rolex Masters kicking off on Saturday, or D10's attempts to break a world record tonight! If that's still not enough, head over to our calendar for more.
Li Na: I've lost all confidence
Tennis star, Li Na, who became the first Chinese player, and the first national of an Asian country to bring home a Grand Slams title earlier this year, stunned her fans in Beijing yesterday by crashing out of the China Open. The world number five was defeated 6-4, 6-0 by Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu.
Roger Federer to miss Shanghai Masters!
Say it ain't so! Current world no.3 and all-around pretty decent player Roger Federer has just announced that he won't be participating in the upcoming Shanghai Masters next month. It's the second time Federer's pulled out from competing in Shanghai, after the longtime world no.1 declined his Masters invitation in 2009. Current world no.1 Novak Djokovic is also unlikely to make it to Shanghai, as a recent back injury will require between three to six weeks to heal. It comes as little surprise that two of the top three players in the ATP Tour would miss out on the upcoming tournament in Shanghai, as the Masters follow both the U.S. Open (the year's fourth and last Grand Slam) and Davis Cup matches, two must-play events on the ATP schedule. Players have recently threatened to strike due to the grueling schedule set up by the International Tennis Federation, and will meet in Shanghai during next month's Masters to discuss the situation.
Tennis, anyone? Shanghai Masters and China Open coming in October!
Break out the sunscreen and parasols, because tennis season is imminent! The Shanghai Masters and Beijing's China Open kick off next month, giving local tennis fans their annual chance to see players like Nadal, Federer, Sharapova and the Williams sisters swing grunty backhand volleys in the flesh. The China Open will take place from September 30th to October 9th at the China National Tennis Center, while the Shanghai Masters will run from October 8th to the 16th at the Shanghai Qizhong Tennis Center. Schwing!
ATP tennis tickets now on sale
"TENNIS fans now can purchase tickets to this year's Shanghai Rolex Masters, Asia's only ATP Masters 1000 tournament, to be staged October 8-16. Tickets can be obtained in three ways: People can book online, by phone (962123), or by going to one of the three ticket offices in the city - at Jiushi Tower on Zhongshan Road S., at the Super Brand Mall in the Pudong New Area and the Grand Gateway in Xujiahui. Two websites are set up for online booking: www.shanghairolexmasters.com and www.jusstickets.com. Tickets will be delivered to homes if people book online or through the hotline." [Shanghai Daily]
Watch: Roger Federer gives Chinese tennis star Li Na advice and learns some Chinese!
Take a look at the advice 16-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer has to give newly crowned French Open winner Li Na. And Li Na's one question for Federer? "How can you play so well in tennis?" Fair enough. Stick around for the last bit, where Federer learns some Chinese! 加油李娜！
Quote of the Day: National badminton coach Li Yongbo on tennis champion Li Na
"Li Na isn't, after all, an Olympic champion. The Grand Slam is just one competition, and not really an international championship. While tennis remains a highly traditional professional sport for Westerners and Li Na has achieved a breakthrough, she should continue to work harder and prove herself on the Olympic stage."
Quote of the Day: Tennis champion Li Na on what it feels like to be winning the French Open on June 4
"I don't have to answer this question. We should focus on tennis today... And actually, I don't really know what happened."
Li Na stuns Francesca Schiavoni to become first Chinese to win Grand Slams title
She did it! Li Na has beat defending champion Francesca Schiavone of Italy 6-4, 7-6 (7-0) to become the first Chinese player, and the first national of an Asian country to bring home a Grand Slams title. Watch her moment of crowning glory here. We love how she thanks the sponsors, ball boys, chair umpire, linesmen, her team, crowd -- that's everyone but the Chinese government!
Tennis: Li Na defeats Maria Sharapova to reach French Open final
Li Na (李娜) has made history once again by becoming the first Chinese tennis player to reach the final match of the French Open. Yesterday, she stunned Russia's Maria Sharapova by winning convincing straight sets 6-4, 7-5 to reach her second Grand Slam final where she'll be facing defending champion Francesca Schiavone of Italy. Earlier this year, Li Na lost her nerves along with the Australian Open title to Kim Clijsters in a match where she infamously marched up to the umpire after the second set, demanding, "Can you tell the Chinese, don't teach me how to play tennis?" Let's hope she keeps her cool this time and brings home that title. Go Li Na!
Kim Clijsters wins Australian Open as Li Na cracks under pressure
Kim Clijsters of Belgium beat Wuhan-born Li Na (李娜) 3-6 6-3 6-3 to win the Australian Open and her fourth grand slam title earlier today. Despite a strong start, Li imploded under pressure halfway into the game, and marched up to British umpire Alison Lang after the second set, demanding, "Can you tell the Chinese, don't teach me how to play tennis?" Well done, anyway, Li Na! You'll have many more grand slams ahead of you!
Watch: Li Na beats Caroline Wozniacki to become first Chinese player to reach a Grand Slam singles final
Earlier today at the Australian Open, Li Na (李娜) beat top seed Caroline Wozniacki 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 to become the first Chinese player to reach a Grand Slam singles final. Watch the final moments of the game below.
Weekendist: Tennis, Pirates, COVOX and Cocktails
Monday mornings are notorious for the feelings of dread that they impose on us all -another manic week of work, deadlines, rush hours, homework, overtime etc. Come Wednesday, we are all filled with a kind of numbness; on the plus side we are half through the week, on the down side - 2 more days of work. Come Friday, however, well, what a great feeling -the weekend is no more than 8 hours away!
Li Na defeats Venus, becomes China's first top ten tennis player
Li Na (李娜) moved into the semifinals at the 2010 Australian Open today by defeating 7-time Grand Slam champion, Venus Williams, 2-6, 7-6(4), 7-5. Despite being down a set, 3-5, and two points away from losing the match, Li Na fought back using her powerful groundstrokes off both sides, successfully moving Venus from side to side.
Zheng Jie moves into Aussie Open semifinals
Zheng Jie (郑洁) continues to plow through the 2010 Australian Open, making her way into the semifinals with a 6-1, 6-3 vicory over Maria Kirilenko, of Russia. During the match, Zheng used her deep and accurate groundstrokes along with her fast feet to defeat the Russian player who upset Maria Sharapova earlier in the tournament.
Li Na and Zheng Jie make tennis history down under
Li Na (李娜) and Zheng Jie (郑洁) reached the quarterfinals of this year's Australian Open, currently going on. Today, Li Na, the number 16 seed, advanced by defeating the world's number 4, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, 6-4, 6-3. However, Li is not the first Chinese woman to reach the quarterfinals at the Australian Open. That honor goes to Zheng Jie, who by sheer luck, played her match yesterday. She defeated the number 31 seed, Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine, 7-6(5), 6-4. Li Na will next take on Venus Williams, seeded 6th, while Zheng Jie will take on unseeded Maria Kirilenko of Russia.
Zhang Shuai and the future of Chinese tennis
Last weekend, the finals of the China Tennis Grand Prix took place in Nanjing. It was the culmination of a week-long event, which was actually the culmination of several months of tennis played at multiple levels in cities across China.
Zeng serves Sela upset at Shanghai Masters
Zeng Shaoxuan, a wildcard entry from China, upset Dudi Sela yesterday in the first round of the Shanghai Masters. Zeng, ranked 396th worldwide, defeated the 44th-ranked Israeli in an come from behind victory. Sela, who has reached a semifinal and two quarterfinals so far this season, started off strong with a five-game win string, but faltered through the second and third sets. Zeng said the enthusiasm of the crowd helped him win, and we cant' blame him: we imagine it was quite an uproar. Photo:Shanghai Daily
Federer withdraws from Shanghai Masters
What's with superstar athletes dropping out of Shanghai sporting events? First Usain Bolt doesn't show up to the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix, and now the number one ranked tennis star Roger Federer has pulled out of the Shanghai Masters event next month. Federer, citing fatigue, pulled out of both the Shanghai event and the Japan Open, but had some nice words of consolation for both cities, stating "I am disappointed that I have to withdraw from Tokyo and Shanghai as they are two of my favorite cities in the world and the fans have been great to me over the years." We're sad we have to miss out on yet another superstar coming to Shanghai. Photo: swampa @ flickr
Amateur tennis league launching in China next month
The words "tennis powerhouse" are not generally associated with China, but the PRC has made great progress in recent years in terms of establishing itself as a rising star in the tennis world--witness Li Na coming in second at this month's Monterrey Open and Zheng Jie (pictured above) making it to the semifinals at Wimbledon last year.
Taiwanese player scores Australian Open upset
It's not easy being the only male player of Chinese descent at a tennis tournament, but Taiwanese player, Lu Yen-Hsun (卢彦勋) doesn't seem to mind. He scored the first major upset on the men's side of the Australian Open yesterday. He defeated the number ten seed, David Nalbandian of Argentina, 6-4, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. In the 3rd round, the no. 61 player in the world will next play the no. 21 seed, Tommy Robredo from Spain. Regardless of what happens, this will be the best grand slam effort of Lu's career.
Shanghai Masters Cup starts with a bang
History repeated itself again yesterday as top-seeded (and not top-ranked-anymore) Roger Federer lost his first round match at this year's Shanghai Masters Cup, currently going on at the Qizhong Stadium. This year-ending tennis event represents the gathering of the eight "best" players on the ATP Tour of the year for a fierce round-robin competition to earn not only the honor of winning the Masters Cup, but also a nice purse of $625,000.
Sexy Beijing: Women in the Olympics
Shanghaiist's sports editor, and founding editor of ChinaSportsToday.com, Maggie Rauch, speaks to Sufei of Sexy Beijing about tennis star Zheng Jie and gender testing. Part 1 of the series can be found here.
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