夜市小吃攤中崛起的臺灣網(wǎng)球之光

It should have been one of the happiest times of Yu Te Tseng’s life. But Tseng, the father of the world’s best male junior tennis player, lowered his head and put his right hand to his eyes, trying to stem the flow of tears.

這本該是曾育德一生中最幸福的時刻之一。但這位世界最佳青少年男子網(wǎng)球手的父親，卻低下了頭，把右手放到眼睛上，努力想要止住淚流。

He was sitting in a garden at the United States Open in September after his son, Chun Hsin, had won another big match. But while a friend patted him on the back, Tseng needed more than a minute to compose himself and explain his sadness.

那是9月在美網(wǎng)的球場，兒子俊欣又贏了一場大賽之后。當一位朋友拍了拍他的背時，曾育德用了不止一分鐘來收拾情緒，解釋他為何傷心。

For years, Tseng has coached his son, 17, who plans to turn professional at a tournament in Hong Kong at the end of the month. For years, father and son have traveled the globe while Chun Hsin, also known as Jason, soared from a working class background in Taipei, Taiwan, to the top of the junior tennis rankings.

多年來，曾育德一直給兒子當教練，17歲的他計劃在那個月底的香港錦標賽上轉(zhuǎn)為職業(yè)球員。多年來，父子二人輾轉(zhuǎn)世界各地，兒子俊欣(英文名Jason)從臺北的工薪階層背景，躍至青少年網(wǎng)球排名的冠軍。

He tore through the competition in 2018, reaching the final of the Australian Open junior singles tournament in January and winning the French Open junior title in June and Wimbledon’s in July. He was also a semifinalist in the U.S. Open boys event, and finished the year as the No. 1 junior.

2018年的賽事他一路過關斬將，1月份殺進澳洲網(wǎng)球公開賽青少年組男單決賽，6月份贏得法國網(wǎng)球公開賽青少年組男單冠軍，7月份溫布爾登奪冠。他還是美國網(wǎng)球公開賽青少年組的半決賽選手，年終成為世界排名第一的青少年選手。

But while he was achieving all that with his father by his side, Tseng’s mother remained in Taipei, running the family’s small food stand and looking after his 15-year-old brother, Yun Di Tseng.

在父親的陪伴下取得所有這些成績的同時，他的母親仍在臺北，一邊料理家里的小吃攤，一邊照顧他15歲的弟弟曾允帝。

For his mother, Chung Han Tsai, the heavy workload has taken a toll.The family owns a stall at the Lehua night market in Taipei, where they sell tanghulu, a treat made of glazed fruit and tomatoes on a stick. They stay on their feet from 4 p.m. until 1 a.m., with hardly a moment to spare for a break.

對母親蔡仲涵來說，工作的重擔讓她付出了代價。一家人在臺北樂華夜市有個小攤位，他們在那里賣糖葫蘆，這是一種用蜜餞和串在棍子上的番茄制成的小吃。他們從下午4點一直站到凌晨1點，幾乎沒有片刻的休息。

When Yu Te Tseng cannot be there because of Jason’s travel schedule, his wife is left to do it alone. But she suffers from myotenositis, a severe inflammation of her limbs, likely caused by repetitive stress from doing the job since they opened the stand in 1999.

由于俊欣的行程安排，曾育德去不了攤位的時候，他的妻子就獨自一人忙活。但可能是由于自1999年開設攤位以來干活導致的重復性勞損，她得了肌腱炎，這是一種四肢嚴重發(fā)炎的病癥。

“My wife this year has developed health problems from working so hard,” Tseng said through an interpreter after his tears finally subsided. “The current situation, with us traveling and she stays at home, she is starting to feel that the body cannot hold up. I don’t want my wife to go through this. One day recently, she said, ‘I cannot do this much longer.’

“我太太因為工作太辛苦，身體出了狀況，”在淚水終于收住后，曾育德通過翻譯說。“現(xiàn)在的情況是，我們?nèi)ネ獾卣鲬?zhàn)，她就留在家里，她開始感覺身體撐不住了。我不希望她那么累，不久前的一天，她自己也說‘我做不了太久了’。”

“Of course, when Jason gets very successful, we won’t have to worry about the financial situation so much.”

“當然，俊欣很成功的話，我們不用太擔心經(jīng)濟情況。”

Jason Tseng’s parents have tried to shield him from the burden of feeling like the family bread winner, and during an interview in September he said, “I never think about that.”

曾俊欣的父母一直努力保護他，不讓他覺得有養(yǎng)家糊口的負擔，在9月的一次采訪中，他說“我從沒想過這個問題”。

But they all know the stakes.As he enters the professional ranks, Tseng is ranked No. 441. Studies have shown that only the top 100 players or so earn enough money to make a living, after subtracting travel and coaching expenses. For now, financial support from Formosa Plastics Group, China Airlines and Taiwan’s tennis federation help Tseng pay for his training and travel.

但他們都知道風險所在。在進入職業(yè)排名后，他的排名是第441位。研究表明，只有排名前100名左右的球員在減去旅行和教練費用后，才能掙到足夠的錢來維持生計。眼下，臺塑集團(Formosa Plastics Group)、中華航空(China Airlines)、臺灣網(wǎng)球協(xié)會給予的經(jīng)濟支持，能幫助曾俊欣支付他的訓練和旅行費用。

Tseng is the first boy to win two Grand Slam junior singles titles in the same year since Filip Peliwo of Canada did it in 2012. That does not always translate into success on the professional tour, though. Peliwo is currently ranked 259th, and his best career ranking was No. 161, in May. In the five years since he turned pro, Peliwo, 24, has earned $274,386, or about $54,000 a year.

曾俊欣是繼加拿大的菲利普·佩里沃(Filip Peliwo)2012年之后，第一位在同一年中兩次奪得大滿貫青少年組男單冠軍的少年。不過在職業(yè)生涯中，這并不總是意味著成功。佩里沃目前排名259位，而他最好的職業(yè)排名是5月的161位。在轉(zhuǎn)為職業(yè)球手5年之后，24歲的佩里沃掙了27.4386萬加元，約合每年5.4萬美元。

Some players who won one or more Grand Slam junior tournaments became superstars, like John McEnroe, Roger Federer, Stefan Edberg and Andy Roddick. Others, like Uladzimir Ignatik, Yuki Bhambri and Peliwo, haven’t fared so well.

有一些贏了一兩場大滿貫青少年賽事的球手成為了超級明星，像約翰·麥肯羅(John McEnroe)、羅杰·費德勒(Roger Federer)、斯蒂芬·埃德伯格(Stefan Edberg) 和安迪·羅迪克(Andy Roddick)。而其他人，像弗拉基米爾·伊戈納提克(Uladzimir Ignatik)、尤奇·班布里(Yuki Bhambri)和佩里沃，并沒有十分成功。

Tseng, who shares a birthday with Federer (Aug. 8), certainly has the shots, tenacity and baseline power to make a living on tour. But at 5-foot-8 and 136 pounds, he will be challenged to reach the elite level in a sport that seems to be trending in favor of tall players with huge serves.

曾俊欣與費德勒的生日是同一天(8月8日)，他確實擁有可以在巡回賽上謀生的擊球、頑強及底線力量。但在一個似乎有利于能大力發(fā)球的高個球員的體育項目里，身高1米75、體重62公斤的他，要達到精英水平將面臨挑戰(zhàn)。

“He’s tiny for the moment,” said Patrick Mouratoglou, the coach and head of the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in France, where Tseng has trained since he was 13. “But he’s going to be strong because he is an incredibly hard worker. You don’t need to be big to be successful. Look at Novak Djokovic, he’s the best mover on tour and he’s very light.”

“他現(xiàn)在個頭很小，”法國莫拉托格魯網(wǎng)球?qū)W院(Mouratoglou Tennis Academy)負責人、教練帕特里克·莫拉托格魯(Patrick Mouratoglou)表示，曾俊欣自13歲起就一直在那里受訓。“但他會變得強大起來，因為他無比刻苦。要成功，你不需要變得很大只?？纯粗Z瓦克·德約科維奇(Novak Djokovic)，他是巡回賽里移動最靈活的球員，身體輕盈。”

From the moment Tseng arrived in France, his unrelenting work rate astounded Mouratoglou.“He’s an incredible worker,” Mouratoglou said of Tseng. “Like, incredible. The quality, the intensity and the amount of work he is able to achieve every day is very, very rare.”

從曾俊欣抵達法國的那一刻起，他毫不松懈的訓練效率就讓莫拉托格魯大為驚訝。“他無比努力，”莫拉托格魯談到曾俊欣時說。“讓人難以置信。他每天能夠達到的練習質(zhì)量、強度和練習量是非常、非常罕見的。”

Tseng first played tennis at age 5 with his father, who likes to be called Ed. Within a few years, Jason had demonstrated unusual talent, and his father discovered that his night job was suddenly an advantage. It enabled him to train his son during the day.

曾俊欣第一次打網(wǎng)球是5歲時和父親，后者喜歡別人叫他埃德(Ed)。短短幾年里，曾俊欣就展現(xiàn)出了不同尋常的天賦，他的父親發(fā)現(xiàn)自己的夜間工作突然成為了優(yōu)勢。這份工作能讓他白天訓練兒子。

On a typical day, Ed Tseng would work at the night market and get to sleep around 2 a.m. He would wake up three and a half hours later for early-morning practices, after which he and his son would return home, shower and prepare for school. The father would then sleep a bit more before rejoining his son for afternoon practice. Then it was back to work with his wife.

通常，曾育德晚上在夜市上班，然后凌晨兩點左右上床睡覺。三個半小時后，他要起床去進行晨練，之后他和兒子回家，洗澡、準備上學。曾育德會再補一點覺，然后下午再和兒子一起練球。之后就和妻子再回去上班。

But once Jason began traveling for tournaments, his father made most of those trips, while his mother stayed behind to work.

但當曾俊欣開始四處打巡回賽時，他父親會參加大部分行程，母親則留在臺灣工作。

“He was always with me and supported me,” Jason said, “And she worked very hard at the business. It was very good for me.”

“他一直都陪著我、支持我，”曾俊欣說。“而她在我們家的攤位上干活很辛苦。這對我來說很好。”

On some nights, Jason and his brother would make the five-minute walk from their home to join their parents at the market, doing their homework there or pitching in by peeling tomatoes. But Jason’s focus and dreams were always on tennis.“In that moment, I don’t have a lot of time to go out with friends and do relaxing things,” he said. “I was always working, working. That is how the professional player has to do it.”

在有些晚上，曾俊欣和弟弟會從家里走路五分鐘，去夜市和父母在一起，他們在那里做功課，或是幫忙給番茄剝皮。但曾俊欣的關注點和夢想一直都是網(wǎng)球。“在那一刻，我沒有很多時間和朋友出去玩、放松，”他說。“我一直都在練球、練球。這就是職業(yè)球員必須要做的。”

Jason Tseng said he does not really like the treats his parents sell. He prefers ice cream, although he eliminated it from his training diet. He indulged in his favorite treat twice recently, though: to celebrate winning the French Open and Wimbledon junior titles.

曾俊欣說，他不怎么喜歡父母賣的那些小吃。他更喜歡冰激淋，盡管他把它從訓練飲食里去掉了。但近期，他放縱地吃了兩次自己最愛的零食：為了慶祝自己獲得法國公開賽和溫布爾登青少年冠軍。

Tsai could not make those trips. She remained in Taipei, selling tanghulu. But when Jason plays, Ed sends her updates. In a recent email, he said his wife told him that Jason’s victories buoyed her spirit, making her stand stronger in the moment.

蔡仲涵不能一起前往巡回賽。她得留在臺北賣糖葫蘆。但每當曾俊欣打球時，埃德會發(fā)給她最新情況。在近期的一封郵件里，他說妻子告訴他，曾俊欣的勝利激勵了她的精神，讓她變得更堅強。

But the arrangement is no longer tenable with her physical condition. Tsai needs rest to recover, and Ed said this week that in the spring, the family plans to shutter the business. Legally, it cannot be sold, just closed. But now that Jason will be earning some money on tour, the investment in his future may pay off and the financial burden eased.

但她的身體狀況無法應付這種安排了。蔡仲涵需要休息才能恢復身體，曾育德本周說，明年春天的時候，他們計劃關掉攤位。從法律層面來說，它不能被賣掉，只能關張。但如今曾俊欣會在巡回賽上賺到些錢，對他未來的投資可能會有回報，也能減輕家里的經(jīng)濟負擔。

“I don’t know how far he can go,” Ed Tseng said. “But we are doing everything we can to maximize his talent.”

“我不知道他能走多遠，”曾育德說。“但我們正在盡一切努力，發(fā)揮他的才能。”