Amid recent controversies and scandals, an unexpected hero has emerged from the 2016 Olympics.
China's Fu Yuanhui, whose theatrical post-race interviews have captured the hearts of viewers around the world, made headlines last week after her team placed fourth in the 4x100 medley relay.
“I don’t think I performed very well today. I feel I let my teammates down,” Fu told Chinese broadcaster CCTV following the race.
"My period started last night,” she continued, visibly in pain. “So I'm feeling pretty weak and really tired, but this is not an excuse. At the end of the day, I just didn't swim that well."
Fu might not have won the relay, but her frank comments have struck a powerful chord.
The way young women are taught about menstruation is best described as paradoxical. We’re supposed to accept that menstruation, while a significant change, is also trivial and should not disrupt their lives or the lives of others. Furthermore, menstruation is natural and normal (speaking to the “role” of being a woman), but should be kept concealed from others, especially males.
It is bewildering how so much embarrassment, awkwardness, and ignorance surrounds a natural bodily function experienced by half the population at some point in their lives. It is upsetting that we can acknowledge our other human needs with the presence of products such as toilet paper, but feel compelled to hide our tampons. And on a global scale, it is disgraceful that millions of young women are forced to miss school and other opportunities not only due to a lack of feminine hygiene products, but also because it’s easier to stay home than face isolation and shame.
So for an Olympic athlete to openly acknowledge the affect her period had on her performance is pretty extraordinary.
Are we witnessing the slow shattering of one of society’s most nonsensical taboos? Whether or not she intended to start what has become a global conversation, we can thank Yuanhui for raising awareness of the stigma surrounding menstruation.
For being so unapologetically herself, she totally won gold in our hearts.
