China’s Chen Meng successfully defended her Olympic crown in the table tennis women’s singles, defeating her teammate, Sun Yingsha, 4-2 in the final at the Paris Olympics 2024. This victory mirrors their showdown at the Tokyo Olympics, where Chen Meng clinched gold and Sun Yingsha took silver. After the match, Chen Meng expressed her surprise and delight, saying, “I didn’t expect this. Over the past three years, I’ve lost to Shasha many times. I can only remember winning twice. So today, I approached the match with the mentality of a challenger.”
Chen Meng is an Olympic Champion 🥇
— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) August 3, 2024
China for the win!!! 🇨🇳#Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/oqWs7gGK0J
From “Huang Xiaoming’s Cousin” to “Chen Meng’s Cousin”
Shortly after the final, Chen Meng’s cousin, actor Huang Xiaoming, took to Weibo to congratulate her. He wrote, “Ahhhhh! So exciting! Thank you to both athletes for such a wonderful match! I could hardly breathe watching it! The girls are amazing! Congratulations to Meng Meng! You’ve done it! You’ve proven yourself with your strength under immense pressure! You’re always our pride! All the hard work and sweat were worth it! Keep up the good work in the upcoming matches.” Huang Xiaoming also sent 100 red envelopes in a WeChat group to celebrate his cousin’s victory, joyfully remarking, “My cousin is the champion; I got more congratulations than when I won Best Actor!” Chen Meng had revealed that Huang Xiaoming would send him messages everyday and followed her matches.
The 30-year-old athlete and her actor cousin have achieved success in their respective fields—one in table tennis, the other in the entertainment industry. Chen Meng previously shared how she was often referred to as “Huang Xiaoming’s cousin,” but that has changed as she has become a national athlete and Olympic champion. In the industry, one can be criticized for “riding the wave” of others’ popularity, but with her recent win, fans jokingly anticipated Huang Xiaoming would definitely comment on it. The 46-year old star was never shy about showing his pride and being known as “Chen Meng’s cousin,” embracing the moment as a proud family member. The two are second cousins as their grandmothers are sisters.
Photos: Weibo
