What is driving fans of China’s elite athletes crazier than those who idolise entertainment stars?

SHANGHAI: When top Chinese gymnast Zhang Boheng landed in Beijing in August after the Paris Olympics, hordes of excited fans drove him to hide in the airport toilet.

The 24-year-old had to be escorted out by security – and he was not alone.

Diver Quan Hongchan, who won two gold medals at the Games, was in Macao on her post-Olympic victory tour when she was mobbed by fans at her hotel.

The 17-year-old was similarly forced to take refuge in a toilet, visibly shaken and in tears. Fans also caused sleepless nights for her family members by swarming her home in rural Guangzhou, according to social media reports.

Such scenes have become increasingly common, with some sporting idols falling victim to fan mobs who are seemingly more crazed than those going after China’s entertainment stars.

Beijing has cracked down on what it calls “toxic” celebrity culture over the years. Authorities told sports fans during the Paris Games in July and August that it affects athletes’ performances and taints the country’s reputation.

Experts told CNA that the athletes themselves, through no fault of their own, could have unknowingly pushed some fans into these extreme actions.

ATHLETES SHOULD GET MEDIA TRAINING

Dr He Ling Feng, a psychology professor at the Shanghai University of Sport, said athletes have simply not been trained to handle fans and chaotic situations.

“Their daily lives revolve around (sports) training. So when it comes to social interactions or meeting the needs of fans, or expressing themselves, athletes would fall way behind movie celebrities,” Dr He added.

He recommended that sports teams provide “some basic training”.

“When sports stars appear in public, if they can give fans what they need and guide them on what to do next, it can prevent extreme and chaotic situations,” he said.

“It’s important to understand that fans have expectations. They simply want the stars to pose for photos, say a few words and calm them down.”

PSYCHE OF FANS

To understand the psyche of fan mobs, CNA spoke to a former ardent fan of a Chinese singer-songwriter.

She asked to be known only as Xiao J, because she fears some fans can get “quite sensitive about certain comments regarding their idols”.

In the past, she did her fair share of going head over heels over her idol.

“My monthly salary was probably around 6,000 or 7,000 yuan (US$850 to US$990), and just one concert could cost over 5,000 yuan for a ticket alone. Plus, if the concert wasn’t held in Shanghai, I’d also need to pay for round-trip flights to that city, hotel and meals,” she revealed.

“Overall, the total costs of attending a concert could easily exceed my entire monthly salary.”

Counsellor Hu Miao Miao, founder of Wan Xin Psychology Centre in Shanghai, said he has encountered far worse situations.

Dr Hu once had a nurse as a client who chalked up 500,000 yuan of debt chasing after her idol. He was called to help after debtors began showing up at the hospital where she worked.

He pointed out that fans are seeking a sense of belonging, while organised fan groups are driven by commercial interests.

“When the emotional drive of fans meets commercial forces, the end result is explosive,” he added.

“LEGITIMATELY SCARY” SITUATIONS

Beijing-based Mark Dreyer, a former sports reporter, was in Beijing recently when football megastar Lionel Messi played a friendly match there. 

Dreyer recounted how the situation got “legitimately scary” and “out of control”.

“There weren't nearly enough security guards,” said the founder of China Sports Insider and author of the book Sporting Superpower: An Insider's View on China's Quest to Be the Best.

“The crowds were surging forward every time they thought the bus that may or may not have been carrying Messi was arriving at the hotel, and I saw some (quite) young children who ... sort of falling over and trampled to some extent,” he told CNA’s East Asia Tonight programme.

“It’s just this extreme intersection between the sports and the celebrity … this passion from the fans that kind of spills out of control.

“Add to that… in China you get crowd sizes larger than you would in other parts of the world, and it can turn into fairly scary situations.”

Dreyer echoed Dr He’s opinion that Chinese sports stars lack sufficient media training. He pointed to how their western counterparts are more used to press conferences and facing more pointed questions.

Media training for sport stars could come in handy when the first stop of the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup 2024 takes place in Shanghai from Friday (Oct 18) to Sunday. China’s Olympic stars will be among the swimmers descending on the city.

Given the swimmers’ newfound celebrity statuses, without at least some basic skills to appease the fans, Chinese authorities are likely to have their hands full keeping the mobs in check.