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In November, espnWs weekly essay series will focus on giving. Air Max 90 Wholesale Uk .I first heard of Chinese Olympic swimmer Fu Yuanhui when someone on Facebook posted an article about her with the caption: I want to be her best friend. I winced and moved on. For days, I did not click on the link, until I saw even more people posting about her -- always with the same words. Shes amazing. I love her. Too real.Oh, no, I thought. Oh no. I knew exactly where this was going. But I clicked anyway.When I was in elementary school, I was the only Asian in my grade. On the playground, my classmates pretended to be Chinese, saying things like ching-chong-chaw and doing kung-fu. At my desk, I seethed but could not explain why -- only that it came from some deep feeling that my classmates were pretending to be Chinese the way kids pretend to be aliens or superheroes.One afternoon, my classmates had gathered around me, fascinated by my eyes. Theyre different, one of them announced, and then they all stepped in closer. I wondered if I had became a caricature by being fully Asian and half-Chinese.When I grew older, the narrative changed. After college, I spent some time studying Chinese in China, in an attempt to understand my mothers culture. The majority of my male classmates had arrived on a different quest: They wanted a girlfriend.Chinese women are beautiful, one of my classmates told me. He handed me his phone. The contacts list was filled with the names of women hed met clubbing. The album was packed with photographs of him wrapped around each of the women hed met, their faces green and silver from the flashing lights of the clubs.I cant speak the language, I hate the food here and I miss my family, he told me as he swiped through each picture so quickly the faces blurred together, but Im not going home until I get a girlfriend.Theyre different from American women, my apartment mate explained when I asked him about the allure. Theyre more feminine and more submissive. Perfect wife material.Chinese women had evolved to mean sexy. I couldnt decide if that was better or worse. Really, it was just about the same as being a caricature, but now served with a side of submission and breasts.With all of that in mind, I read all the stories and watched interviews of Fu Yuanhui, expecting a celebrity swimmer who was polite and poster beautiful.The unexpected happened: I too fell in love. I, too, wanted Fu Yuanhui to be my best friend. She wasnt poster-pretty. She was something far better: She was human.When Fu Yuanhui heard shed come in third at the 100-meter backstroke finals at the Rio Olympics, she gasped for air, stuttered and then mangled her lanyard from the sheer joy of winning. Her bubbling, over-the-top delight with life was infectious. In the photographs, while other athletes posed for the camera, smiles frozen in place, she clutched her medal mouth open in a silent roar of happiness. She made faces, grinned maniacally.The moment I truly fell for her was during the womens 4x100-meter medley relay when she emerged from the pool doubled over in pain. Her period left her feeling weak, she told the reporter, and she didnt swim her best. Then, she apologized for her performance and moved on.Never mind the cultural taboo that exists around periods, particularly in China, where tampons are hard to come by. Never mind the cultural taboos about periods that exist around the world. Fu Yuanhui swam in pain; she felt like she underperformed; she apologized; and that was all simply all there was to it.Fu Yuanhui didnt give us pretty, she gave us joy so fierce you could feel its power blasting through the camera lens. She didnt give us pitch-perfect celebrity-speak molded to showcase her best self to the press. She gave us herself, her incandescent happiness, her earthly pain.She showed us its possible to be loved by the world for simply being yourself. And for this, we loved her, for this we continue to love her: Fu Yuanhui, champion swimmer, champion human.Shalene Gupta is currently working on a novel about growing up Chinese-Indian in Minnesota. A former Fortune reporter, with an M.S. from Columbia Journalism School, she is currently a freelance writer living in Boston. Follow her @ShaleneGupta Authentic Air Max 90 . Mickelson barely made the cut but had the best round of the day with nine birdies and an eagle coupled with two bogeys to sit two shots behind leader Craig Lee of Scotland. Lee shot a 69 for a 12-under 204 total. "I just love the fact I am in contention and have an opportunity in my first tournament of the year here in Abu Dhabi," Mickelson said. Cheap Air Max 200 . -- In one brief spurt, Brazil turned a close game into a rout and proved again it will be a strong World Cup favourite. http:///...ainers-cheap-uk.html . LOUIS -- Rookie Tavon Austin has missed another day of practice, lessening the odds hell be ready for the St. Arizonas Larry Fitzgerald, Miamis Mike Pouncey and the New York Jets Brandon Marshall are among the 32 players eligible for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.Named for the late Hall of Fame running back, the award recognizes a players community service and performance on the field. The NFL announced the players on Wednesday.The winner will receive a $500,000 donation to his favorite charity and $500,000 in his name to support the NFL and United Ways Character Playbook program in his teams market. The program is an initiative launched in April that focuses on youth character development and healthy relationships.Two of the three finalists will receive a $125,000 contribution to a charity of his choice and $125,000 will go to Character Playbook.Each team nominates a player, and the remaining 29 players will receive $50,000 to the charity of their choice from the NFL Foundation, Nationwide and United Way, and the same amount for the playbook program in their city.The winner will be announced during the NFL Honors show on Feb. 4, the night before the Super Bowl, when The Associated PPress announces its individual player awards, including MVP. Fake Air Max For Sale. Anquan Boldin, then with the 49ers, won the award last season.The nominees:Arizona -- FitzgeraldAtlanta -- Matt RyanBaltimore -- Steve Smith Sr.Buffalo -- Eric WoodCarolina -- Greg OlsenChicago -- Sam AchoCincinnati -- Andy DaltonCleveland -- Joe ThomasDallas -- Sean LeeDenver -- Virgil GreenDetroit -- Don CareyGreen Bay -- Jayrone ElliottHouston -- Brian CushingIndianapolis -- Joe ReitzJacksonville -- Julius ThomasKansas City -- Alex SmithLos Angeles -- Johnny HekkerMiami -- PounceyMinnesota -- Chad GreenwayNew England -- Rob GronkowskiNew Orleans -- Roman HarperN.Y. Giants -- Eli ManningN.Y. Jets -- MarshallOakland -- Dan WilliamsPhiladelphia -- Jon DorenbosPittsburgh -- Arthur MoatsSan Diego -- Jeremiah AttaochuSan Francisco -- Torrey SmithSeattle -- Cliff AvrilTampa Bay -- Vincent JacksonTennessee -- Jurrell CaseyWashington -- Pierre GarconThe Associated Press contributed to this report. ' ' '