Silver Medalist... Chinese Weightlifting Star Tears Up at Compliments Saying "Pretty" [Asian Games]

Silver Medal for North Korea's Rim Eunsim in Women's 64kg on the 2nd
Responding to Ongoing Appearance Questions: "Skill Matters More Than Looks"

Chinese weightlifting rookie Fei Xinli (18) took second place in the women's 64kg weightlifting event at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games held on the 2nd at the Xiaoshan Sports Center in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. She is listening to questions from the Chinese press during the medalists' press conference.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Chinese weightlifting rising star Fei Xinyi (18) finally showed tears in response to the continuous questions about her appearance from Chinese reporters.

At the women's 64kg A group weightlifting event held on the 2nd at the Xiaoshan Sports Center in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, during the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, Fei Xinyi lifted 104kg in the snatch, 130kg in the clean and jerk, totaling 234kg, finishing second behind North Korea's Rim Eun-sim (27) by a 17kg difference.

After the competition, Fei Xinyi's popularity among Chinese reporters was so great that the official medalists' press conference was delayed. She is a social network service (SNS) star within China.

At the official press conference that day, Rim Eun-sim was asked questions related to her performance, such as "Why North Korean female weightlifters are dominating China in this Asian Games" and "Training methods during the period when she could not participate in international competitions due to sanctions imposed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC)."

In contrast, Fei Xinyi was mainly asked questions about her "appearance." Fei Xinyi said, "I know that many people on the internet say I am 'pretty.' I am grateful," and then stopped speaking.

Soon, with her eyes reddened, Fei Xinyi said, "My goal is not to become prettier but to improve my weightlifting records," adding, "I am sorry that I could not show a better performance to those who cheered for me at the venue today," before lowering her head.

Fei Xinyi made her international debut at the Jinju Asia Weightlifting Championships in May this year, competing in the 59kg category and finishing second with a total of 236kg. In September, at the World Championships held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, she lifted a total of 232kg in the women's 59kg category, finishing third.

In this competition, where she moved up to the 64kg category, she felt the skill gap with Rim Eun-sim throughout the event. Having not won a single gold medal in three international competitions this year, Fei Xinyi shed tears filled with many emotions.