'Appearance Controversy' Chinese Track Athlete Suddenly Covers Face During New Record Interview

Zhong Wuenni Covers Eyelashes Falling Out During Interview
From 10th to 1st, Sets New Women's Best and Record

Chinese track and field hurdle star Wu Yanni's interview after setting a new record has become a hot topic.

Chinese track hurdler Wu Yanni.
Photo by South China Morning Post, Hong Kong

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 5th, Wu Yanni took first place with a time of 12.74 seconds in the '2024 National Athletics Championships 100m hurdles' held on the 30th of last month in Rizhao, Shandong Province.

Her time that day was the best Asian women's 100m hurdles record of the season and a new personal record for Wu Yanni. During the post-competition interview, an unexpected situation occurred where the false eyelashes on Wu Yanni's left eye fell off. She quickly covered her eye with her hand and continued the interview.

Netizens responded positively to Wu Yanni, saying, "The moment she covers her eye is cute," "She covers it at the speed of light," and "Her hand movements are as fast as her running." This was a completely different attitude compared to the previous competition.

Chinese national representative in the men's 100m hurdles, Wu Yanni Photo from Chinese SNS

On April 20th, Wu Yanni recorded a disappointing time of 13.04 seconds in the women's 100m hurdles at the '2024 Diamond League' held in Xiamen on the southeast coast of China. Netizens criticized her for not focusing on the race, wearing heavy makeup, and dressing in revealing clothes.

At that time, Wu Yanni wore sparkling star-shaped makeup, and her athletic outfit was quite revealing.

Starting in lane 1, Wu Yanni had a poor start and fell behind her competitors even before clearing the first hurdle. Failing to close the gap with her rivals, she crossed the finish line in tenth place, delivering a disappointing performance.

After the race, Wu Yanni said, "The competitors were too fast," and "I tried my best, but my first start was not good, which broke my rhythm, and it was too late to catch up."

However, netizens attributed her poor performance to focusing too much on her appearance. At that time, netizens said, "Fans come to watch your race, not your looks," and "We appreciate the process and the results." Another netizen criticized, "She doesn't care about the race and likes to wear overly sexy outfits," adding, "She is good at drawing attention with other things when her results are poor."