Source: Susan Mullane/ISI Photos / Getty
Taylor Townsend has quickly retired any ambitions to be the next Keith Lee. The world’s number one women’s doubles tennis player, Townsend, is in China for the Billie Jean King Cup, which goes through the weekend.
Townsend went out to eat some local Chinese food, but very quickly found out that the food you get in China is different from what you might order from a Chinese takeout back in the States. At a buffet, Townsend saw that bullfrog and turtle were on the menu and was grossed out.
“These people are literally killing frogs,” she posted on her Instagram stories, adding photos from the buffet and joking she needed to talk to HR. “I’m honestly just so shocked at what I saw in the dinner buffet,” she continued. “And as I go back and I look … These people are literally killing frogs … Bullfrogs. Aren’t those poisonous? Aren’t those the ones that give you warts and boils and stuff? And turtles?”
“And the fact that it’s all stewed up with chillies, peppers, and onions … And then you got the sea cucumbers just staring there, with the noodles. The only thing that we eat. All in all, I’d give this, like, a solid 2/10 so far, because this is crazy.”
The backlash from Chinese fans was swift. On Townsend’s Instagram page, one user posted, “I was such a fan, Taylor, until you posted stories shitting on my culture’s delicacies during this Asian swing. Just cuz you ain’t never seen sea cucumber or eaten turtle doesn’t mean others don’t. You’re a whole adult, an internationally recognized pro tennis athlete who has traveled the world. How are you still judging other people’s foods like this? You’re the reason I never brought lunch to school as a kid.”
Several posters referenced her recent conversation with opponent Jeļena Ostapenko, who accused Townsend of having “no class or education” after losing to her at the U.S. Open. While others viewed the confrontation as racial in nature, Ostapenko, who is from Latvia, said the issue was that English wasn’t her first language and her words were misinterpreted. In her response, Townsend downplayed any racist intent, saying she let her racket speak for her.
Several posters said Townsend’s remarks made her a racist now that she was critical of food she was unfamiliar with.
One said, “Jelena is correct: NO EDUCATION, NO CLASS. 👏👏 Shame on you making comments on Chinese food, esp when you are traveling there, and you have ZERO awareness of that. 🤡🤡🤡 If you can’t show even the most basic respect for other cultures, at least stay quiet. Mocking traditions you don’t understand just makes you a pariah, both in tennis and in the world.”
After the backlash, Townsend returned to social media to apologize for her comments.
“I just wanted to come on here and apologize sincerely from the bottom of my heart,” Townsend began. “I understand that I am so privileged as a professional athlete to be able to travel around the world and experience cultural differences. (It’s) one of the things that I love so much about what I do, and I have had nothing but the most amazing experience in time here and the tournament.”
She continued, “Everyone has been so kind and so gracious. And the things that I said were not representative of that at all. And I just truly wanted to apologize. There’s no excuse, there are no words. And for me, I just, I will be better.”
See social media’s reaction to the situation below.
