Tennis star Taylor Townsend took to Instagram to apologize for comments she made regarding the food served in China, where she is competing for the United States in the Billie Jean King Cup.
“I just wanted to come on here and apologize sincerely from the bottom of my heart,” Townsend, 29, said in a video posted to her story on Wednesday, September 17.
“(It’s) one of the things that I love so much about what I do, and I have had nothing but the most amazing experience in time here and the tournament,” she added. “Everyone has been so kind and so gracious. And the things that I said were not representative of that at all. And I just truly wanted to apologize. There’s no excuse, there are no words. And for me, I just, I will be better.”
Townsend and her teammates are in Shenzhen, China, where they are preparing to face Kazakhstan on Thursday. She sparked controversy when she shared an Instagram video of the food the team was served, which included local specialties of turtle, bull frogs and sea cucumber.
“This is the craziest thing I’ve ever seen…and people eating this,” she captioned one of her videos.
“Imma have to talk to HR…because what the hell…turtle and bull frog is wild,” she captioned another.
Townsend, who is ranked No. 1 in the world in doubles, issued her apology just three weeks after she was involved in another controversy, stemming from an altercation at the U.S. Open. She appeared to have a heated post-match exchange with Latvian pro Jelena Ostapenko after Townsend defeated her in the second round.
Ostapenko, 28, was heard saying Townsend has “no class” and “no education” after she alleges Townsend didn’t say “sorry” when she was helped by a net cord during a point.
“There are some rules in tennis which most of the players follow and it was (the) first time ever that this happened to me on tour,” Ostapenko explained in an Instagram post. “If she plays in her homeland, it doesn’t mean that she can behave and do whatever she wants.”
Ostapenko also opened up about “how many messages I received that I am a racist” over social media.
“I was NEVER racist in my life and I respect all nations of people in the world. For me it doesn’t matter where you come from,” she wrote.
Townsend, for her part, said she did not take Ostapenko’s criticism as a racist jab.
“I didn’t take it in that way, but also, you know, that has been a stigma in our community of being ‘not educated’ and all of the things, when it’s the furthest thing from the truth,” she said, per the AP.
