TAYLOR Townsend, the American tennis star, has issued an apology after drawing backlash for mocking traditional Chinese dishes while competing in Shenzhen for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.

Townsend earlier posted Instagram videos ridiculing menu items such as soft-shell turtle, bullfrog, and sea cucumber, calling them “crazy” and rating the food “two out of 10.”

Her remarks sparked anger on Chinese social media, with a trending hashtag accusing her of publicly insulting Chinese cuisine, a report by BBC said.

In a follow-up post, the 29-year-old admitted her comments were “offensive” and said she would “be better.” Townsend added that as a professional athlete, she is privileged to experience different cultures and has had “the most amazing experience” at the tournament.

The controversy comes just weeks after Townsend was involved in a heated on-court spat with Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, who later apologized for her own remarks.

Townsend and Team USA are set to face Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals on Thursday.(Xienderlyn Trinidad, USJ-R Comm Intern)

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