“瓷娃娃”福原愛官宣退役
Never before have Chinese internet users so openly liked and supported a Japanese athlete as they have loved table tennis star Ai Fukuhara, better known by her Japanese nickname “Ai-Chan”.
乒乓球明星福原愛有個大家更熟悉的日本暱稱“愛醬”，在她之前，還沒有哪個日本運動員受到中國網友如此公開的喜愛和支持。But they may now feel heartbroken, as the 29-year-old announced on Oct 21 that she would be retiring from the sport. “I’ve found the answers within myself that I have been searching for. From the standpoint of an athlete, I’m drawing the line here,” Fukuhara wrote on her blog.
但如今，網友們或許會感到有些難過。10月21日，現年29歲的福原愛宣佈退役。“我找到了內心一直在尋找的答案。作爲一名運動員，我要在這裏退役了，”福原愛在博客上寫道。After she starting playing table tennis at 3 years old, Fukuhara was seen as a child genius at the sport. Being trained in China at a very young age, Fukuhara can speak fluent Mandarin, with a northeastern accent.
3歲開始打乒乓球的福原愛被視爲乒乓球神童。她自幼便來到中國訓練，能說一口流利的東北話。
If her deep-rooted connection with China is one thing that has won the hearts of Chinese fans, her personality is another. She always shows her real self to the public without hiding her emotions. She laughs in games when she wins, and cries when loses. The fact that she often cries when she gets upset has earned her the nickname “Crybaby Ai-Chan” in China.
與中國的深厚情誼是她獲得中國粉絲喜愛的一大原因，而她的性格也圈粉無數。她不會在公衆面前掩飾情緒，向來都在展示真實的自己：比賽贏了就笑，輸了就哭。難過時愛哭的性格也讓她在中國有了“哭包愛醬”的外號。
Despite being beaten by a long line of Chinese champions, Fukuhara always tries her best when playing her favorite sport.
儘管福原愛曾敗於衆多中國冠軍，但她在這項自己最愛的運動上，一直努力做到最好。Yet, she also knows that now is the best time to close the curtain on her successful career. It’s hard to say goodbye to a long journey, but as Fukuhara once said on a reality TV show, “Life is not all about table tennis. Instead, life contains it.”
然而職業生涯大獲成功的她也知道，如今是退居幕後的最好時機。要告別一段漫長旅途並非易事，但正如福原愛曾在一檔電視真人秀中所說的那樣：“不是乒乓球裏面有人生，是人生裏面有乒乓球。”As for her future plans, Fukuhara wrote that she would like to promote table tennis and help more people around the world get to know the beauty of the sport.
對於未來的規劃，福原愛表示她想要推廣乒乓球運動，幫助全世界更多的人瞭解這項運動的美好。Indeed, sport is something that goes beyond national boundaries, just as the friendship between Fukuhara and the Chinese coaches, athletes, and fans shows.
就像福原愛和中國教練、運動員以及粉絲之間的友情所展現的那樣，體育的確超越了國界。
