Eileen Gu’s assured reply to a reporter went viral on the Winter Olympics, and he is since addressed the controversy.
Eileen Gu’s response to a reporter went viral on the Winter Olympics (Picture: Getty) This text incorporates affiliate hyperlinks, we’ll obtain a fee on any gross sales we generate from it. Be taught extra
The reporter who went viral for his controversial interplay with Winter Olympics star Eileen Gu has spoken out. The American-born freestyle skier who competes for China has added two extra medals to her trophy cupboard on the Milano Cortina Video games, incomes silver within the slopestyle and large air occasions.
Regardless of having missed out on gold to date, the 22-year-old turned probably the most adorned feminine Olympic freestyle skier in historical past this month, following her three medals gained at Beijing 2022, together with gold within the huge air and halfpipe. Gu can be the joint-most adorned Olympic freestyle skier ever, alongside Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury.
Whereas she has hit historic milestones in her self-discipline, AFP reporter John Weaver requested her, after inserting second within the huge air occasion, whether or not she thought of her Milano Cortina Video games expertise as “two silvers gained or two golds misplaced.” Laughing upon listening to the query, a measured Gu identified the issue of profitable an Olympic medal while rattling off her personal distinctive file.
The skier mentioned: “I feel that is a solution in and of itself. How do I say this? Profitable a medal on the Olympics is a life-changing expertise for each athlete. Doing it 5 occasions is exponentially more durable, as a result of each medal is equally onerous for me, however everyone else’s expectations rise.
“The 2 medals misplaced scenario, to be fairly frank with you, I feel is type of a ridiculous perspective to take.” The clip of her response went viral throughout social media and has been considered over three million occasions.
Weaver has since defined his reasoning behind the query, insisting he needed to grasp Gu’s feelings after she did not retain her title. “High athletes in all sports activities have a fierce profitable mentality and it is fascinating to gauge their reactions after they simply miss out,” he mentioned.
“I used to be shocked by the tone of her response however I believed it was a good query and she or he gave a sturdy response.” Social media had their tackle the scenario, with one X person praising Gu’s assured reply as they wrote: “She could be very sensible and tremendous good answering this query. Imagine it or not, she goes to be somebody fairly extraordinary, far past simply an athlete sooner or later.”
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Nonetheless, some believed Weaver was nicely inside his rights to delve into her emotional state as they commented: “There was nothing unsuitable with this query. It was a query of expectations and perspective. Many silver-winner athletes take into account second place a loss to gold.”
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