Interview with Wu Yanni: I've had bad moments in my sports career, and now I'm enjoying it

The Paper

2024-05-14 08:12Posted on the official account of Shanghai The Paper

The top two in Asia in the women's 100-meter hurdles, with a flamboyant personality and makeup and tattoos, Wu Yanni has never lacked topics. But she said that she relied on strength rather than "Internet celebrity". The Paper Reporter Liu Haonan Ming Que Video Editor Liu Haonan Intern Wu Jiaxin Color Grading Jiang Yong Poster Wu Jiaying (17:23)

In this year's indoor season, Wu Yanni brushed PB (personal best) four times in one month, creating the "best in Asia" in the season at that time. But in the next two Diamond Leagues, she failed to continue this momentum with European and American athletes, and Wu Yanni ranked 10th with a time of 13.04 seconds at the World Athletics Diamond League Xiamen Station.

In her appearance on the field, she unsurprisingly appeared on the hot search again because of her makeup, clothing, and grades, and also suffered cyberbullying because of her achievements.

After the game, she told The Paper that she wanted to follow the European and American players to improve her performance, but the opponent was too fast and did not follow. Regarding the voices of doubt, she said that she did not care and had "the courage to be hated".

In July 1997, Wu Yanni was born in a small town in Fushun County, Zigong City, Sichuan Province. When she was 9 years old, she participated in a sports competition in Neijiang City and was favored by the enlightenment coach Zhou Youjun. Later, he went to Chengdu to study under Coach Ye Hu. In April 2012, Wu Yanni was selected by Yang Hui, the hurdle coach of Beijing Sport University, and began her training career in the north. In 2019, she was selected for the national training team.

On April 25, 62-year-old Yang Hui recalled that 12 years ago, when he first met Wu Yanni, the other party was only 15 years old and nearly 1.7 meters tall, "at first glance, he is a good seedling".

Yang Hui said that Wu Yanni has a big personality, never has stage fright, no matter what happens, training is not discounted, which has never changed.

Soon, Wu Yanni rose to prominence, winning multiple national championship titles and silver medals at the World Universiade: the 2018 National Championships, the 2020 National Championships, the 2021 National Track and Field Championships and Olympic Trials, the 2023 National Track and Field Championships, the World Championships and Asian Games Trials, and the 2024 National Indoor Track and Field Championships 60m hurdles champion, becoming the leader of the Chinese women's 100m hurdles.

In 2021, Wu Yanni was in the Western Security Games. Source: Internet

But what made her "out of the circle" more than the results was the "rush" incident at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year.

After Wu Yanni was sentenced to steal, the original second result was canceled, and wearing makeup, tattoos, and pre-game actions all made her fall into the whirlpool of public opinion.

She recalled that the defeat in the 2021 National Games and the "rush" incident in the 2023 Asian Games were the darkest moments of her life.

Yang Hui was very impressed, after the Hangzhou Asian Games, he saw the overwhelming doubts on the Internet, and was worried that the apprentice would not be able to bear the pressure and quit the sports circle. It wasn't until Wu Yanni went to visit him in the hospital that Yang Hui realized that she was too worried, and she had no intention of retreating.

On the one hand, there are constant doubts, and on the other hand, Wu Yanni's Douyin fans have risen to 3.2 million. Her fans say they like her flamboyance, self-confidence, and "being brave enough to be yourself."

Yang Hui told us that the national team has no clear rules on the tattoos and makeup of players, and he has contacted Wu Yanni's mother, who assured her that these will not affect Wu Yanni's training and competitions.

At last year's Chengdu Universiade, Wu Yanni set a new personal best and became the first athlete from Sichuan to qualify for the Paris Olympics, and she will represent the Chinese team in August this year.

On May 12, in the women's 100m hurdles final of the World Athletics Intercontinental Tour Osaka Station, Wu Yanni ran 12.86 seconds and won the first outdoor championship of her season.

On May 12, after winning the World Athletics Continental Tour (Osaka Station), Wu Yanni took a group photo with her coach. Source: Wu Yanni's team

"Athletics has made me a really mature person." On April 25, she said in an exclusive interview with The Paper that the charm of competitive sports is that you are never the strongest, "It is very cruel, so you want to break through yourself." ”

She hopes to break the national record at the Paris Olympics.

On April 26, the day before the game, Wu Yanni conducted training on the field. Unless otherwise noted, the pictures in this article are all taken by surging news reporter Liu Haonan

[The following is based on the conversation between the surging news reporter and Wu Yanni:]

"Now it's time to play with the mentality of the game"

The Paper: How many competitions have you participated in this year?

Wu Yanni: This year, I participated in three indoor competitions and one outdoor competition, a total of four games (as of April 25).

The Paper: Do you think it's hard?

Wu Yanni: I think it's fun. I used to play for the sake of playing, but now I approach the game with a "play" mentality, not to say disrespect for the game, but to make my mentality more relaxed.

The Paper: What exactly does this "play" mentality mean?

Wu Yanni: Focus on the process and ignore the result.

The Paper: Why do you think there is such a change?

Wu Yanni: One is the 2021 National Games, and the other is the Asian Games in Hangzhou last year. I've had the worst moment of my career, and probably nothing could get worse than that. Because of this, I feel more relaxed now.

The Paper: How do you feel and gain from participating in these competitions this year?

Wu Yanni: The charm of competitive sports is that you are never the strongest one, it is very cruel, so you want to break through yourself. It's a painful process, but I think it's very exciting, and youth is used to challenge the limits and break through yourself. I am a very flamboyant, very high-profile, very dragged person, and participating in these competitions has made me more calm.

The Paper: Will you be more stressed to participate in international competitions?

Wu Yanni: No, I will tell myself to follow them and not to mess with the rhythm. That's what I ask of myself. But this time (World Athletics Federation Diamond League Xiamen Station) competition, the rhythm is still out of order.

The Paper: Do you usually have the same flamboyant personality as you do on the field?

Wu Yanni: In my daily life, I am just that kind of ordinary girl. The biggest takeaway from athletics is that it has made me a truly mature person with the courage to be hated.

The Paper: Don't you care about winning or losing as much as you used to?

Wu Yanni: I used to want to win so much. The defeat at the 2021 National Games was a hurdle in my life. I was running for the championship and ended up being runner-up, but I wasn't willing to do that. At the Asian Games in Hangzhou last year, I was probably too nervous, and there were many other factors that caused me to run ahead. Some time ago, I communicated with many top domestic athletes, and they all told me: don't care about the result, do a good job, as long as the process is done well, the result will naturally not be bad.

The Paper: In the face of competitive sports, it is unlikely that you don't care about the outcome at all.

Wu Yanni: Human beings are a contradiction. The more you expect something, the more disappointed you will be. On the contrary, you don't expect it much, but the result is actually okay.

Wu Yanni.

"The more people spray me, the more motivated I am"

The Paper: What factors do you think will affect the results of competitive sports competitions?

Wu Yanni: There are many factors, whether it is the outside world or the individual athletes. For example, some fans shouted "Sister Ni, come on!" "I just want to run well and not let them down, but if the pressure is not well controlled, the results will easily fall, and it is easy to have mental exhaustion. On the contrary, the more they say that I Wu Yanni loves beauty and is high-profile, the more I want to show them in a high-profile manner: Sister has strength and achievements, you spray yours, I should eat, train, and compete.

Wu Yanni.

The Paper: Is it easier for people to question you to stimulate your potential?

Wu Yanni: It's impossible for everyone to like you, there are always people who question you. I was questioned, which to a certain extent also shows their affirmation of my strength.

The Paper: After the World Athletics Diamond League Xiamen Station, someone sprayed you on the Internet again, do you think it has anything to do with the results of this competition?

Wu Yanni: I don't care, I'll be happy.

The Paper: Don't you care about these doubts and ridicules?

Wu Yanni: I know my strength. The more they spray me, the happier and more motivated I am.

The Paper: I took a look, and there are two main aspects of questioning this time, one is your clothing, and the other is your grades. Are you satisfied with the results of this (World Athletics Diamond League Xiamen)?

Wu Yanni: It didn't meet my personal expectations, but when you compare it with the results in the first half of 2023, I'm still very satisfied. I was in very good shape when I got used to the venue in Xiamen that day, but because of the gap between the Asian players and the European and American players, I wanted to follow them and improve my performance, but they were too fast to keep up. It's my second time competing against the best in the world, and for me, there's a lot to learn from both the mentality and the experience.

Wu Yanni stepped on the field to train before the game.

"Why can't I, Wu Yanni, win the championship?"

The Paper: You once said that you were a small-town girl, can you tell us about your birth and upbringing?

Wu Yanni: I was born in a small town below Fushun County, Zigong City, Sichuan Province, and I have had "ADHD" since I was a child...... Someone always said to my family, "You take care of Wu Yanni to see if she has ADHD, she just can't sit still." "Once, my mother said to me, "Wu Yanni, you sit there for a minute, and I'll give you 100 yuan." I said, "I don't sit, I don't even sit to death." "I like to play marbles, race cars, and ride bikes...... And the more I was left to do anything from a young age, the more I wanted to do it.

The Paper: Are there any memorable events?

Wu Yanni: My dad was a soldier, and we lived in the army for a while. I remember when I was four or five years old, I went with the other children in the yard to steal other people's pears and poke the honeycomb. At that time, I was very short and loved to run around. After eating the pears, we lay down under the tree and fell asleep. That time, my mother was looking for me everywhere, worried that I would be trafficked.

The Paper: Why did you want to practice track and field at that time?

Wu Yanni: I started training track and field in 2009. At that time, because my mother was doing some small business, we came to Neijiang City from Zigong City and went to Neijiang City for half a semester. I once participated in a sports meeting in the city, and I was taken by my enlightenment coach. He asked me, "Would you like to practice athletics?" "He said that I have long legs, I run fast, I have an advantage in track and field, and I am a good seedling. At that time, I was blank on athletics. I started dancing at the age of 3 and a half, and I practiced folk dance for 9 years, and my idol at that time was Yang Liping, and I liked her peacock dance. I was thinking about stretching every day, and after stretching, I had to practice my body and dance, I felt so tired and boring, I might as well go outside and run more. So, when my mom asked me if I wanted to go athletics, I said yes.

When she was a child, Wu Yanni practiced dancing. Source: Wu Yanni's team

The Paper: What influence did your mother have on your choice of this path?

Wu Yanni: My mom used to be on the varsity team, and she practiced basketball, but she didn't stick to it. Sometimes, my mom would say that she didn't expect me to be able to persevere as a dance student after switching to track and field.

Wu Yanni and her mother took a group photo. Source: Wu Yanni's team

The Paper: What was the hardest time?

Wu Yanni: When I was 16 or 17 years old, I had a herniated disc in my lumbar spine. At first, my mother didn't believe it, saying that only the elderly would have this disease. At that time, I was young and curious about the new skills of the coach, so I wanted to impact the strength and see where my limits were. As a result, because of irregular movements, he suffered a back injury. Now my lower back is also severely strained, but this is quite normal.

That year, because of a herniated disc in my lumbar spine, I slept almost standing up throughout the winter training. At that time, it was a bunk bed in Beijing Sports (Beijing Sport University). In the winter of 2014, my back was seriously injured because of my lack of self-protection. I can't sit for a long time, I can't walk for a long time, I have to slow down, I can't lie down, I can't stand, and I can't train anymore.

But I had to train, so I endured the pain, persevered, and asked the team doctor to give me a patch. Every time, when everyone is gone, and I'm still on the training ground, the coach asks, "Aren't you still leaving?" I said, "It's okay, coach, I'll stretch." After saying that, I sneaked into the toilet and cried because it hurt so much. During that time, I fell asleep and would wake up in the middle of the night. I need to stretch to relieve the pain. So, I quietly got down from the top bunk and stretched carefully, and the people in the dorm were sleeping, and I couldn't disturb others. It was almost 7 o'clock, and he quietly climbed into bed and pretended that he had just woken up.

Wu Yanni when she was a teenager. Source: Wu Yanni's team

Wu Yanni (second row, second from right) when she was a teenager. Source: Wu Yanni's team

The Paper: How did you spend that time?

Wu Yanni: Later, when the leaders learned about my condition, they asked a doctor to help me see me. I apply a hot compress with a medicine pack every day, and after each training, stretch and condition, and then do some massage, and slowly get better. In the first Youth Games, I lived up to expectations and won the championship. I'm usually a talker, but when I was preparing for the first Youth Games, I didn't talk much for two months, except for communicating with the coach and team doctor. At that time, I wore headphones every day, and when I was bored, I would watch dramas or read books, just to win the championship.

The Paper: At that time, the championship and gold medal were really important to you?

Wu Yanni: I thought at the time, everyone else can win the championship, why can't I, Wu Yanni? I'm very competitive, and I'm a Leo, and I've wanted to win since I was a kid. I didn't want to disappoint my mom and I didn't want to disappoint the coach. In the 2021 National Games, I also went for the championship and gold medal, but in the end I only won the runner-up. At the end of the game, I was very uncomfortable and crying there. The coach comforted me and said, "It's okay, Yanni, aren't you injured?" "I just reacted. In addition to the annual championships, the National Games is the largest event in China, and the gold content is very high.

The Paper: I see you said before that you couldn't get out of this shadow for a whole year, how did you spend that year?

Wu Yanni: I'm in a very low mood, and I always feel like others are watching my jokes. During the day, it is normal on the surface, telling people "it's okay", and secretly crying under the quilt at night. That year, I didn't participate in any competitions, it seems that I only participated in one game in China, and then I went to Columbia in the United States to train, and I did not participate in competitions during training.

The Paper: How are you recovering now?

Wu Yanni: I regularly go to the hospital for rehabilitation training, and now I am recovering quite well. It's normal for an athlete to have an injury. Be optimistic, this injury will heal quickly; If the internal friction is severe, it will get better and slower.

Wu Yanni and coach Yang Wei.

"I'm going to be nervous before the game"

The Paper: Are you still nervous before the game?

Wu Yanni: Yes, I'm still nervous. I think it's normal for athletes to be nervous before a competition.

The Paper: What are the signs of nervousness? What will be done?

Wu Yanni: In the past, I was so nervous that my hand to pick up the runner was often shaking. I remember that when I participated in the first National Track and Field Championships, I was so nervous that I ran the third lane to the fourth lane of my house to pick up the running machine, and then I heard my sister say, "Sister, you are standing on the wrong path." "I just went back to the third lane and picked up my starting gear again.

The Paper: You shouldn't be in this situation now?

Wu Yanni: Now that I'm indifferent, maybe the international competition will still be nervous, but the domestic competition will not be because there are too many experiences.

The Paper: You are one of the best in the 100-meter hurdles in China.

Wu Yanni: My current opponents are mainly European and American players, and if you are from Asia, everyone is at the same level, and it depends on who is in good shape.

The Paper: Do you have insomnia the night before the race?

Wu Yanni: I think that insomnia before the competition is a compulsory course, something that you have to go through to become an elite athlete. But I had to sleep even when I had insomnia, so I kept lying there, closing my eyes and recuperating, and telling myself not to play with my phone. Because lying until dawn is better than playing with your phone.

The Paper: Do you feel like you're enjoying the game more and more now?

Wu Yanni: Yes, I enjoyed it very much, I enjoyed it very much, I felt that the competition was very exciting, I like excitement.

The Paper: Most athletes, burdened with national honors, are walking on thin ice, and it is difficult for them to truly enjoy the competition itself.

Wu Yanni: After the 2021 National Games, I didn't dare to watch my game video for the whole year, until I returned to China after training in the second year, and suddenly I watched my video on Douyin, and after watching it in its entirety, I called my mother to talk about it, and I cried as I spoke. My mom lamented, "You've grown up now and can accept your imperfections and accept your failures." "From that point on, I felt that the game was not so difficult and I started to enjoy the game slowly.

Wu Yanni and coach Yang Hui tried to use a reporter's camera.

"There's nothing wrong with being confident and flamboyant"

The Paper: Have you been wearing makeup since 2022?

Wu Yanni: After I got a little success in the competition, my mother told me, "Girls must wear makeup, and they will look better on camera." "But at that time, I was lazy and didn't want to wear makeup. In the summer of 2023, when I participated in the Chengdu Indoor Competition, I tried makeup for the first time, and I felt that it was indeed much more pleasing to the eyes than without makeup, and I was no longer as grizzled as before, and my whole complexion looked much better. Since then, I've been wearing makeup every time I compete.

The Paper: When you put on makeup for the first time, do you worry that you are too eye-catching?

Wu Yanni: All the focus is on me, and I will perform better. They don't all say I'm a "performative personality" (laughs), yes, I'm crazy, and the more people there are, the more excited I am and the more I want to show myself. And I think that it is a very normal thing for girls to wear makeup, and it cannot deprive everyone of their right to love beauty.

The Paper: Are you worried that your words and deeds will affect the national team?

Wu Yanni: I will definitely pay attention to this, but I think that while paying attention to your words and deeds, you should not lose yourself. Winning glory for the country is a particularly honorable and responsible thing, and if you lose yourself, you will not do well.

The Paper: Since last year, there have been continuous doubts about you, but at the same time, there are many people who support you, feel that you are confident, brave to be yourself, and out of your own style, what do you think of this controversy?

Wu Yanni: I was born with a collapsed nose and very small facial features. After learning how to wear makeup, I would draw my nose shadow very exaggerated before every game, so that when the photographer took pictures, he could see that my nose was very straight and my facial features would be more three-dimensional. So, when they said, "Wu Yanni has a ...... nose and chin", I was very happy because I felt that it was an affirmation of my makeup skills. Actually, I just cut my eyelids.

For this kind of controversy, I think that we should allow others to be others and allow ourselves to be ourselves, which is the most important thing.

Wu Yanni took a group photo with fans.

There are three kinds of people who question me, the first is people who have a different opinion from me, they don't like some things about me, but they are kind. The second type is the people who hack me purely for the sake of being black, they use me to make memes, spoof memes, and slander me. I can provide them with emotional value, and I don't think it matters. The third is for the sake of traffic, taking words out of context, and using me to cut leeks. I don't like this kind of person.

The Paper: Why do you think it's easy to cause controversy? What exactly is the reason behind this?

Wu Yanni: Actually, athletes love to perform, and they are all competitive, but everyone expresses themselves in different ways. Now that society is more inclusive, it is people with a character like me that reflect that there is nothing wrong with a girl's self-confidence, and there is nothing wrong with being public.

The Paper: Last year's "rush" incident, when you saw the overwhelming doubts, were you scared at the time?

Wu Yanni: I'm not afraid, I don't care what people on the Internet say about me or scold me, what I'm afraid of is that the people who support me are sad and disappointed.

The Paper: How did you manage to become more and more courageous in the face of doubts?

Wu Yanni: I just say "I don't care", yes, don't care about that, because I really don't care (laughs).

In the pre-game group collection session, Wu Yanni faced media reporters from all over the world.

"I don't accept being called an influencer athlete"

The Paper: You are known as an Internet celebrity athlete by some people, what do you think of this title?

Wu Yanni: I don't accept this title, I feel that I am a strong athlete, I rely on my own strength to meet the standards of this year's Paris Olympics, and I also rely on my own strength to let everyone know that I am Wu Yanni.

The Paper: You said that Liu Xiang was your idol, how did his growth, awards, and subsequent encounters affect you?

Wu Yanni: Brother Xiang's competition has a murderous aura, I don't know if you can feel it, as long as he goes to the battlefield, he is the king and the brightest star. I've watched many of Brother Xiang's games repeatedly, and his eyes are so fierce, it's the kind of eyes that must have you. He has always been a role model for me.

The Paper: Have you met Liu Xiang in reality?

Wu Yanni: That's what I'm looking forward to, I've imagined this image. I think when I see Brother Xiang, I may cry because I feel distressed.

The Paper: Do you think there is some similarity between the cyberbullying he suffered back then and the environment you are in now?

Wu Yanni: There are similarities, but also differences, Brother Xiang won more than 40 championships for the country, and was later scolded like that, and I am just a national champion, ranked in the top two in Asia, and it is acceptable to be scolded like this.

The Paper: Everyone has seen that you have taken a lot of commercial shoots this year, will this affect your training and competitions?

Wu Yanni: There are not many commercial shooting, now it is mainly training and competitions, and some businesses have been postponed, and everything is mainly to prepare for the Olympic Games. Some of this year's commercial auctions were actually taken after the Asian Games last year, and now they are out, and they think that I have received the advertisement now.

The Paper: What are your next training and competition arrangements?

Wu Yanni: After the Diamond League Suzhou tournament, I still have two more tournaments on tour in Japan, and then I start preparing for the Olympic trials. Because I qualified for the Olympics myself, the trials were just a show. Then there is the Paris Olympics in August, which is also the most important competition.

Wu Yanni at the Diamond League Suzhou Station.

The Paper: What does the Paris Olympics mean to you?

Wu Yanni: Yes, this is my first time participating in the Olympics. Actually, I had the opportunity to participate in the last Tokyo Olympics, but because I went abroad to train in 2019, I didn't have enough points, so I couldn't make it.

The Paper: The world record in the women's 100 hurdles is Nigeria's Amsan of 12.12 seconds, and your personal best record is 12.76 seconds, which is still quite a big gap. What are your expectations for the Paris Olympics?

Wu Yanni: Broke the national record, 12.64 seconds.

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