Kneeling before foreigners, nationality controversies, squandering 2 billion...
These harsh labels are hard to imagine being attached to someone who has proudly claimed 18 championship titles for the nation.
Truth and rumors are so entangled around this Olympic champion that it’s difficult to discern fact from fiction.
What is the reality behind these accusations and labels surrounding her? Are they true or false?
In our culture, there is a well-known saying that one should kneel before heaven, earth, and parents, underscoring the deep respect for the act of kneeling.
Yet, a single photo showing her kneeling sparked waves of criticism, accusing her of being overly deferential to foreign influences and making her a target of public scorn.
In that image, she is seen kneeling on both knees before a foreign elder, smiling solemnly, while the elder tightly grasps her hands as if performing some kind of ceremonial ritual.
Online, numerous interpretations emerged—some claimed the man was a religious figure, others speculated wildly about her life abroad, adding exaggerated stories about her overseas studies.
One particular article about her kneeling went viral, spreading like wildfire; many netizens felt disgusted as if “swallowing a fly,” accusing her of damaging both her personal dignity and the nation’s honor.
This whole controversy dates back to when Deng Yaping retired. After years of representing the country and winning countless honors, she felt her academic achievements were lacking.
For elite athletes like her, the country had a clear development strategy, allowing Deng to enroll at Tsinghua University for further education.
At that time, she held a seat on the International Olympic Committee but struggled with language outside the sporting arena.
During a placement test for English at Tsinghua, her skills were found to be almost nonexistent.
Despite this difficult start, she persevered with tremendous determination, eventually earning a bachelor’s degree in English from Tsinghua’s Foreign Languages Department.
Her choice to major in foreign languages was already controversial, and few expected her to later pursue advanced studies abroad, ultimately achieving a PhD from the prestigious University of Cambridge.
Admission to Cambridge, a world-renowned institution, was a clear testament to her intellectual capability and dedication.
The moment captured in the kneeling photo was actually a heartfelt display of emotion while waiting for her graduation certificate, with the elderly man being neither a school official nor a religious leader.
That moment was the culmination of ten years of relentless effort and patient waiting finally bearing fruit.
After the kneeling incident settled down, questions about her son’s nationality stirred new debates...
Deng Yaping and her husband, Lin Zhigang, were both young members of the national team and often spent time discussing their shared passion.
Eventually, romance blossomed, though at the time romantic relationships within the national team were forbidden.
Driven by love, Lin Zhigang returned to Guangdong’s provincial team to continue the relationship.
Their love story faced challenges, including opposition from Lin’s fervent fans, which even led to a temporary breakup.
But fate reunited them—Lin was assigned to a table tennis club in France, and Deng was studying in the UK.
Separated by distance but bound by affection, they rekindled their relationship and decided to start a family.
Their son was born in France in 2006, which sparked widespread controversy as many questioned why she chose to give birth abroad.
Critics suspected ulterior motives, accusing her of wanting to secure French citizenship for her child.
Although Deng explained that her husband’s work situation required them to choose between the UK and France, the doubts lingered.
It was only in 2019 when Deng publicly shared her son’s passport online that the nationality issue was finally put to rest.
Despite being born in France, her son is undeniably Chinese by nationality.
Even after these two controversies about patriotism and alleged foreign favoritism were clarified, another storm involving a massive 2 billion yuan investment thrust Deng into the spotlight...
In 2011, Deng Yaping was appointed as general manager of Jike Search, a surprising move to many.
At the time, with Google withdrawing from China, Baidu dominated over 70% of the search engine market.
To break this monopoly, People’s Daily and People’s Net launched People Search in 2010, later rebranded as Jike Search, aiming to claim a share of the search engine pie as a state-backed competitor.
Typically, such internet projects were led by professionals with deep expertise and vision from Baidu or Tencent.
Though Deng was a former athlete, she had earned a doctorate in economics from Cambridge, making her appointment puzzling to some.
The reality was that Deng already held a deputy editor position at People’s Net, making Jike Search effectively their own “flagship” project.
Thus, it was deemed inappropriate to entrust this key venture to outsiders, positioning Deng as the best candidate to oversee it.
Determined to succeed in an unfamiliar field, she worked tirelessly, often pulling all-nighters to keep the project afloat.
However, the market competition was fierce; Baidu’s dominance faced rising challengers like Sogou and 360, while Jike Search struggled due to immature technology and user-unfriendly features.
Eventually, it merged with Panguso Search in an attempt to survive, but ultimately failed and faded into obscurity.
Rumors spread that 2 billion yuan had been lost in this failed venture, making Deng a scapegoat blamed for “wasting” massive public funds.
Some questioned whether the money was lost to poor development or corruption.
Public opinion harshly criticized her, accusing her of squandering taxpayers’ hard-earned money.
Later, media insiders revealed that the actual investment in Jike Search was closer to 200 million yuan, a relatively modest sum for the internet industry.
Deng herself lamented that if she had 2 billion, perhaps Jike Search could have truly succeeded.
The internet sector’s chaotic competition involved many factors, so blaming Deng entirely for the failure is unfair.
Taking on this project was itself a risky challenge and a hot potato she inherited.
Over the years, various controversies have ebbed and flowed around Deng Yaping, yet as a patriotic athlete, she deserves our trust and respect.
What do you think about these labels? Feel free to leave your thoughts and join the discussion...
Information sources:
[1] Guangming Online, Dec 11, 2014, \"Deng Yaping Did Not Waste 2 Billion, Jike Search Investment About 200 Million\"
[2] Beijing News, Nov 29, 2018, \"Deng Yaping Clarifies the ‘Kneeling Incident’ from Years Ago\"
[3] Qianjiang Evening News, Feb 18, 2019, \"Deng Yaping Responds to Rumors, Shows Passport to Prove Son’s Chinese Nationality\"
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