Zheng Qinwen Continues Li Na's Legacy as China's New Tennis Icon

TMTPOST--New Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen said she wanted to follow in the footsteps of Li Na, a pioneer in women’s tennis in China, and inspire young girls in China to fall in love with the sport.

The 21-year-old Zheng made history as the first Asian player to win an Olympic singles title by overpowering Croatia's Donna Vekic 6-2, 6-3 in the gold medal match in Paris on Saturday. It was the first singles medal for China in tennis since the sport returned to the Olympics in 1988.

Zheng's triumph at the Paris Olympics catapulted her into the limelight, making her a coveted figure for brands. Sponsors who bet on her victory are now reaping the rewards as Zheng becomes one of China's highest-earning sports stars, rivaling the commercial heights of freestyle skier Eileen Gu. Industry insiders predict that Zheng might soon be crowned the "Queen of Endorsements," with annual endorsement earnings nearing 40 million yuan (US$ 5.6 million).

Zheng's commercial success is also attributed to IMG, the world's largest sports management company, which discovered her potential at a young age. At just 11, Zheng was scouted by IMG during her training at the IMG Academy in Florida. This partnership alleviated much of her family's financial burden and set her on the path to professional tennis.

Zheng's annual endorsement earnings include $1.7 million from tournament prizes and $5.5 million from off-court endorsements. Her deals, often spanning two to three years with fees exceeding 10 million yuan, involve various promotional activities, from photo shoots and offline events to social media engagements.

With IMG's backing, Zheng secured a sponsorship deal with Nike at the age of 13. Last year, she had over ten endorsement deals, half of which were with top-tier global brands, raking in $7.2 million in endorsement fees.

In Forbes' 2023 list of highest-paid female athletes, Zheng ranked 15th, with total earnings of $7.2 million, making her the first Chinese female tennis player to make the list following Li Na. Remarkably, less than a quarter of this income came from prize money; the rest was generated through endorsements and licensing deals.

Zheng's endorsement portfolio is extensive and diverse, featuring brands such as Nike, Ant Financial (Alipay), Gatorade, Yili, Wilson, Swisse, Bawang Tea, Lancôme, and Rolex. Her ability to secure deals across various sectors, from sportswear and beverages to skincare and luxury watches, underscores her wide appeal and commercial versatility.

Her confidence, authenticity, positive energy, international appeal, and tenacity on and off the court make her a perfect ambassador for brands. Notably, in August 2022, Zheng became the "Light-Chasing Ambassador" for Ant Financial, with Alipay and Nike logos prominently featured on her attire during matches.

Zheng's Role Model and Devoted Parents

Zheng dedicated her victory to her parents, acknowledging their significant sacrifices for her career. She expressed gratitude to her father's sacrifices: "I have many calluses on my hands, and my feet often have blisters. When I was 14 or 15, my father even sold our house to support my tennis dream. Winning this gold medal makes it all worth it."

The rising tennis star, born in central China's Hubei province, noted that her "behavior, desire, and hunger" for Olympic gold were unparalleled compared to any other tournament.

Li Na, who also hails from Hubei province, enjoyed a stellar 15-year career, winning two Grand Slam titles. Zheng, a finalist at this year's Australian Open where Li triumphed in 2014, fell short in straight sets to Aryna Sabalenka.

Zheng has had three coaches, all of whom previously coached Li. Zheng's first coach was Xia Xiyao, who was also Li Na's first coach. After training under Xia for a year, she was sent to Coach Yu Liqiao of the Hubei provincial team.

Known for her strict and tough coaching style, Yu was famously demanding. Zheng remarked that during her years in Wuhan, Yu was the coach who contributed most significantly to her progress.

But unlike Li, who quit the national team as well as the state-run sports system in 2008 under an experimental reform policy for tennis players, Zheng started out outside the system. This means everything is covered by her family and personal finance, and she does not need to share bonus and reward with the government.

In the first year when Li broke away from the system, she earned between $700,000 and $800,000 in prize money, while her team's annual expenses totaled $980,000, which means she was in a deficit.

Athletes growing outside the state-run system will achieve greater commercial value, as they can engage in endorsements and other commercial activities more independently and flexibly, targeting the vast domestic and international sports markets, said Li Jiang, the director of Yu Tang Sports, a leading Chinese sports marketing firm.

Reflecting on her Melbourne defeat, Zheng recalled, "I had a lot of nerves ... my legs were super-heavy, and I could only perform at 50 percent of my level."

However, on the red clay of Roland Garros, Zheng felt more confident, saying, "I knew exactly what I had to do ... I had every shot and every answer. In the worst case, I was just going to fight, like I did in all the other matches here."

Li's best Olympic performance was a fourth-place finish at the 2008 Beijing Games. Her subsequent achievements established her as the poster girl for Chinese tennis, a mantle now assumed by the powerful hitter Zheng.

"Li Na was an inspiration for me, and I always wanted to become one of the players who could inspire young kids to love tennis," said Zheng, the world No. 7. "Tennis, for me, is such a great sport, especially for girls. You need to fight, you need strength, you need to be fast."

"Finally, I can say to my family, to my father, 'Come on, I just made history.' In the future, if I lose, I will remind him of this. He values the Olympic Games more than any other event, and I think all Chinese fans, including myself, feel the same."

Zheng has won 12 consecutive matches, adding her Olympic triumph to her success at last month's Palermo Open in Italy. She survived several grueling contests to reach the Paris final, including two three-hour-plus matches against Emma Navarro and Angelique Kerber, and a first-time victory over world No. 1 Iga Swiatek.

As her golden week peaked, Zheng, who is based in Barcelona and coached by Spaniard Pere Riba, was buoyed by a large and enthusiastic Chinese contingent on Court Philippe-Chatrier. As she prepared to serve for the first time, shouts of "jiayou" ("add oil" in Mandarin) resonated from the stands.

"All the Chinese crowd were yelling for me – if I was still 19, I would have felt this was a pressure," Zheng said. "But with these two years of experience, having the crowd cheer for me in Chinese ... it is a different feeling.

"I have an international [coaching] team, but I'm Chinese. It doesn't matter where I go, I remember I'm a Chinese athlete, a Chinese player. It's an international team because you always have to be better at your sport."

Zheng revealed the lengths she went to during her formative years to prepare for the highest level and the crucial role her supportive parents played.

"My parents sacrificed a lot for me," Zheng said. "When I was 12, my mum quit her job to support my tennis journey.

"My father always pushed me hard. During Chinese New Year, while everyone else rested, I had no day off. He would take me to the track to run. He made me go up and down the stairs. We did anything just to make my body work. My success is not just mine; it's also my parents."

"They taught me discipline and how to stay focused on my dream. The most important thing is to always believe in yourself. They are not like other parents who say 'you can't do it.' No, since I was nine or ten years old, my father said, 'One day, you will win the Olympics.' I always believed that."