Feeling the fun

The accidental fame of Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui speaks to the gradual shift of public fixation from medals to personal magnetism.

Who would have thought that the biggest Chinese star to emerge from Rio 2016 is not one of the world's fastest or otherwise most competitive. But Fu Yuanhui is in a league of her own.

In one fell swoop the 20-year-old swimmer knocked down from the pedestal the rigidly hallowed image of the Chinese sportsman as the solemn embodiment of a nation's hope and put fun back into sports.