--- title: Chinese Swimmer Speaks Out About Having Her Period description: "Because my period came yesterday, I'm feeling a bit weak, but this is not an excuse" canonical: https://time.com/4453540/chinese-swimmer-speaks-out-about-having-her-period-during-the-olympics/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-16T02:11:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:55:15.477Z article:section: Sports og:title: Chinese Swimmer Talks About Having Her Period During Olympics og:description: Fu Yuanhui nonchalantly broke a lasting taboo og:url: https://time.com/4453540/chinese-swimmer-speaks-out-about-having-her-period-during-the-olympics/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33b344cc77b69707/6988a27a524fc01055df9291/gettyimages-587477996.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5568 og:image:height: 3132 og:image:alt: SWIMMING-OLY-2016-RIO-PODIUM og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Chinese Swimmer Talks About Having Her Period During Olympics twitter:description: Fu Yuanhui nonchalantly broke a lasting taboo twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33b344cc77b69707/6988a27a524fc01055df9291/gettyimages-587477996.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Chinese Swimmer Speaks Out About Having Her Period During the Olympics > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. ## Video: Chinese Swimmer Chen Xinyi Tests Positive at Rio Olympics [Watch (HLS stream): Chinese Swimmer Chen Xinyi Tests Positive at Rio Olympics](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/HFFgdwIN.m3u8) (0:44)  _Published 2016-08-12. Chinese Swimmer Chen Xinyi has become the first competitor in her sport to fail a drug test at the rio olympic games._ by [Julie Mazziotta / People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Julie Mazziotta / People Contributor Aug 16, 2016 2:11 AM UTC  China's Fu Yuanhui poses with her bronze medal on the podium of the Women's 100m Backstroke at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 8, 2016. China's Fu Yuanhui poses with her bronze medal on the podium of the Women's 100m Backstroke at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 8, 2016. Gabriel Bouys—AFP/Getty Images by [Julie Mazziotta / People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Julie Mazziotta / People Contributor Aug 16, 2016 2:11 AM UTC Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui nonchalantly broke a lasting taboo by speaking openly about being on her period during the Olympics. After Yuanhui competed with her teammates in the 4×100-meter medly relay, where they came in fourth, she admitted to the reporter that she didn’t feel well because of her period. Crouching on the ground and clutching her stomach, Yuanhui eventually stood up and said, “I feel I didn’t swim well today. I let my teammates down.” “Because my period came yesterday, I’m feeling a bit weak, but this is not an excuse.” > [](https://twitter.com/shanghaiist/status/765082976048656384) According to the BBC, people in China were posting on social media app Sina Weibo about the health risk of a woman swimming on her period, setting off the hashtag, #FuyuanHuiPeriod. “Someone accused Fu of lying, asking how she could have gone in the water on her period,” Weibo user Dvingnew wrote, according to the BBC. “Chinese people have prejudices about tampons – as a woman over 30, I’d been ignorant, and full of fear, about tampons until now too.” Gynecologist Dr. Jen Gunter, a member of the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology, says it’s entirely false that menstruation contaminates pools. “It’s not any kind of public health risk,” Gunter told Today.com when asked about a similar discussion that popped up in Tbilisi, Georgia, after a woman was shocked to see a sign at her pool and fitness club instructing women not to swim while on their periods. Gunter explained that pool water doesn’t come in and flush out menstrual blood while women are swimming. And while it’s possible that something could leak out, even past a tampon, it would be minuscule. “To hone in on menstrual blood is ridiculous,” Gunter said, when there’s also sweat, urine and fecal matter to consider. “That is why they put chlorine in a pool, because humans secrete.” Gunter was asked about the topic because of a viral Facebook post in which pool member Sophie Tabatadze posted a photo of the sign on Facebook, calling out the Vake Swimming Pool and Fitness Club for “mysogyny.” “Dear Ladies! Do not go to the pool during periods,” the sign says. “Vake Swimming Pool And Fitness Club, do you even realize how offensive this is?” Tabatadze asks in her post. “And, by the way, since according to your rules we are not allowed to use a swimming pool 5-6 days each month, do we get a preferential price compared with men? #mysogyny #mysogynyinaction” Her post set off a heated discussion in the comments, with people arguing in favor of the pool, saying that it’s unhygienic for women to bleed while swimming. Tabatadze fought back, saying that what the pool is doing is sexist body shaming. “This is exactly what it is: shaming women for their periods, reinforcing stigma and stereotypes associated with it,” Tabatadze writes. 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