Chapter 334 My Name
Narrow. Crowded. Stuffy. Noisy.
Press Conference Room No. 6 is not spacious. It looks like it is no more than 40 square meters. There are three rows of seats neatly arranged, which can accommodate 30 reporters. At the back are the cooperating television media of the US Open. Cameras are lined up to record the scene.
The overall scale is almost the same as yesterday's pre-match press conference. This should be the standard press conference room of the event organizer. As for the large-capacity spaces, they are reserved for the biggest players. But the crowded crowd in front of us at this moment is a completely different scene.
Bustling and full.
The room was no longer full, as there were several people standing on both sides of the camera, not wanting to miss the press conference even if they had to stand for the interview.
Today is the second day of the U.S. Open, and including all the men's and women's matches, this is undoubtedly the first upset, especially since the target is the local favorite Isner, as can be seen from the distinguished treatment the tournament officials arranged for him at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Naturally, the reporters went wild.
Gurgling.
Gurgling.
Even if the reporters did not speak, the carbon dioxide they exhaled made the temperature in the room rise steadily. The whirring sound of the air conditioner could not stop the sweat from rushing out. A buzzing and boiling sound continued to surge in the room.
Li Yanan was a little nervous.
She was the one who hosted Gao Wen's press conference yesterday. The host of a press conference needs to be able to speak multiple languages, because Grand Slam tournaments have the habit of conducting bilingual interviews, one in English and the other in the player's native language, so the host needs to have both abilities.
Over the years, the outstanding performance of Chinese women's players has formed a collective advantage, and hosts who are proficient in Chinese have gradually become standard. However, Li Yanan has never encountered a situation like yesterday. Even now, she still can't help sweating down her spine when she thinks about it.
So what about today? Although Li Yanan tried hard to convince herself that she would not make the same mistake again today, she still felt a lingering fear.
At this moment, looking at the packed press conference room in front of him, Li Yanan cast an inquiring look at Gao Wen, and after receiving a smiling nod, he spoke loudly.
"The players are ready to start asking questions now."
Brush, brush, brush.
Swish, swish, swish! You can even clearly hear the sound of arms hitting the air, like the wind blowing through wheat waves, which is spectacular; then you can feel the eagerness to try, the urgency and curiosity conveyed in their eyes are sparkling, like a pack of hungry wolves.
Li Yanan: …
This scene from one extreme to another is rare to see. If Li Yanan had not experienced it personally and someone told her this story, she would probably think that the other person was joking.
Li Yanan subconsciously looked back at Gao Wen, and then he could see that Gao Wen was a little surprised, but he didn't make a fuss. There was a faint smile in his eyes, which made the curve of Li Yanan's mouth relax. After calming down a little, he called the name of the first reporter for the interview.
"Good afternoon, I'm Frank Hancock from ESPN. I'd like to ask you a question, Gao? We saw Pete Sampras in your player's box. Is Sampras your coach?"
The first question is typical and representative:
What they care about is not the victory, but the gossip surrounding the victory. After all, from the perspective of news headlines, "Sampras's disciple upset Isner in the first round" is obviously more shocking.
That's the media.
So, how should Gawain respond?
"Gawain."
He said.
The reporters were confused and didn't understand what Gao Wen was talking about.
Gao Wen had no choice but to repeat it again.
"I mean, my name is Gawain."
As he spoke, he picked up the name tag in front of him and gestured, showing a big smile, just like a newcomer introducing himself in a friendly and cordial manner.
"You can just call me by my full name, it will be more convenient."
puff.
Li Yanan lowered his head to control his laughter, and his expression quickly returned to a professional state. But thinking about the huge difference between yesterday and today, he couldn't help it.
The reporters looked at each other in bewilderment. They had more or less heard about yesterday's incident, as both the ATP and the players' union had strongly condemned it. Such neglect and even humiliation of players was absolutely unacceptable and could not happen to any player.
There were two kinds of reactions from the journalists. One was indignation, including from the Chinese journalists. They believed that such behavior was intolerable and lacked the most basic respect.
One is indifference. He is just a nobody. The cruelest reality in competitive sports is that no one remembers the loser, let alone an unknown person ranked around 200th. No one will remember him after losing to Isner. They just treat it as an interesting anecdote after dinner.
But no one expected that the slap in the face would come so quickly.
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Gao Wen, who was under everyone's gaze, was not shy or nervous at all. He faced all the gazes with dignity. His bright and cheerful appearance actually made the reporters look at him at a disadvantage.
Quietly, the initiative of the press conference shifted, which was probably something that none of the reporters present had expected.
What happened next? Gao Wen did not speak aggressively, but scanned the entire room, meeting the gazes of every reporter with bright eyes, and then continued to speak.
"Pete is a friend who was worried that I would stand on Arthur Ashe Stadium with my knees shaking and not know how to hit the ball, so I asked him to give me some advice."
"Now it seems that Pete is indeed Pete."
Light, humorous, wise, funny, and more importantly, avoiding the point.
This simple sentence seems to answer the question, but the focus has been shifted, which is the most powerful thing.
However, the reporters at the scene did not notice it for a while, and just laughed along.
As for how many people believed Gawain's words, that was another matter. After all, an unknown young player was actually Sampras' friend, and Sampras even appeared in Gawain's player box? If things were really that simple, Sampras would be worthless.
Li Yanan immediately called on the next reporter.
"Hello, Gao Wen. I'm Yu Jia, a reporter from CCTV."
The person who stood up was a familiar face. I didn't expect that it would be the hometown reporter's turn so soon.
"Today, you became the first male player in the history of the Chinese mainland to win a Grand Slam match. You made history. How do you feel about this?"
In just a few words, one could deeply feel the excitement coming from Yu Jia, so much so that even his voice began to tremble slightly.
(End of this chapter)