Japan badminton ace Chiharu Shida blasts ‘stalker’ Chinese fans

FILE–Japan’s Chiharu Shida reacts after falling on the floor in the women’s doubles badminton semi-final match against China during the Paris 2024 Olympics . (Photo by Luis TATO / AFP)

Japanese badminton star Chiharu Shida has told Chinese fans to “stop stalking” her and said she was “very scared” by the unwanted attention.

Shida, who won women’s doubles bronze at the Paris Olympics, has a strong following in China partly because of her engagement with the local culture.

The 27-year-old, currently competing at the Asia Championships in the eastern Chinese city of Ningbo, has been dubbed “Badminton Goddess” by fans and media.

She hit out at some supporters on Tuesday, accusing them in an Instagram post of taking their fandom too far.

“Every time we compete in China we always experience the harm of stalkers,” Shida wrote in Chinese.

“It has already gone on for a year and a half, and recently I have felt very uncomfortable and very scared,” she said.

“From now on, please immediately stop stalking me… but if the situation continues, I will think of a way to handle it.”

Shida added that “not all fans are like this” and thanked the majority for their support.

She and doubles partner Nami Matsuyama are ranked third in the world and beat compatriots Mizuki Otake and Miyu Takahashi in Ningbo on Wednesday.

China’s government has tried to curb extreme fandom in recent years after sports stars and other celebrities experienced stalking and other abuse from particularly fervent followers.

Beijing’s cyber watchdog recently closed nearly 4,000 online accounts and scrubbed 1.6 million posts from the country’s highly controlled Internet platforms to “create a good public opinion environment for athletes,” state broadcaster CCTV reported this week.