Melbourne, Australia, Jan. 20, 2015, — 2014 Australian Open tennis champion Li Na of China attends her farewell ceremony at Rod Laver Arena on the first day of 2015 Australian Open tournament in Melbourne.
Li Na shared her pregnancy news with the spectators during the event. (Xinhua/Bai Xue)
“Dennis [Jiang Shan] and I are so excited. Our first child will arrive in the summer,” Li said to huge cheers from the 15,000 in the audience.
Li Na became the first Grand Slam tennis champion from Asia in June 2011 when she won the French Open. In a statement, she added that she was overjoyed.
“A mere 12 months ago, I stood on this court clutching the Australian Open trophy tightly in my hands, a huge grin on my face, overwhelmed with joy and a sense of accomplishment that I shared with everyone who had helped me along the road to this incredible achievement,” she said.
“Today, all of those emotions came back to me, yet I had extra butterflies in my stomach because I wanted to share a very special secret with the Australian Open fans. Over the years, they have supported me and truly helped my success, so it felt just right to let them in on a little secret I’ve been holding on to for a few months now.
This summer, Dennis and I are expecting our first child. We are overjoyed! And it really feels like this baby is going to enter the world already having about 15,000 friends.”