Aespa’s Ningning recently came under fire from fans who questioned the idol’s apparent choice to support China’s short track speed skating team after they won their first gold medal at the Olympics. Harbin, China’s northernmost province, is home to the aespa maknae. While the idol’s love for her native country is unsurprising, numerous Korean netizens were outraged after reports that the Chinese competitor used unscrupulous techniques to win the prized gold, beating the Korean athlete.
At the current Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, China and South Korea clashed.
The current Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics began in February 2022. While the much-anticipated competition has been dogged by controversy from the outset, some competitors have complained that the Games’ officials have unfairly penalized Chinese participants.
South Korean skater Kwak Yoon-gy was among those who spoke out. The Chinese squad, according to the athlete, cheated in the race. The Korean athlete alleged that one of the relay runners did not properly contact the following player. While other teams were reportedly fined points for similar activities, China was supposedly left off the hook. The Chinese team finally won the gold medal.
Aespa’s Ningning is originally from China.
While the rest of South Korea was outraged by this turn of events, aespa’s Ningning congratulated the Chinese gold medalists on their victory on the DearU Bubble platform. However, not long after, Ningning erased the post, probably as a result of the contentious win. The message was not missed by Korean netizens, with some claiming to have “screen recorded” it. Many others posted portions on The Qoo, a social networking site.
While others were sympathetic to Ningning’s choice to demonstrate support for her homeland, some Korean netizens were outraged, particularly because China’s win came at the expense of their own. The idol’s support for the Chinese side despite their apparent use of unfair tactics did not sit well with supporters.
everyone let’s please fill ningning’s bubble hashtag with good messages!! people have twisted her words and now they think that she supports cheating and are sending her sinophobic messages & asking her to leave the group!
use these hashtags (remove the .)
#.닝닝버블 #.닝깅이에게 pic.twitter.com/DM8jxGVo8V— amor ♊︎ (@poisoneo) February 7, 2022
While she expressed joy at China’s triumph, the entire text of the aespa member’s post reads:
“Wow, I just heard that China earned its first medal tonight, and I’m overjoyed. My homeroom instructor just reminded me that two Olympic winners are graduates, which is a great distinction. Our athletes are all excellent. While watching the Olympics, I thought the athletes from all nations were incredible and had worked so hard. Congratulations!! Every everyone on the planet is a member of the same family.”
The idol, as seen by the postings, offered her congratulations to all athletes, not only the Chinese. The extra facts, however, did not prevent the reaction, leading aespa fans to come out in full support of the member. Prior to her aespa debut in 2020, Ningning had participated in a number of Chinese singing competitions, including China’s Got Talent Season 2 in March 2011 and China’s New Sound Generation in July 2015.
