Palfrey's comments triggered a fierce reaction from team officials and the Australian Olympic Committee.
Lin clinched gold in the women's boxing final match on Sunday, an emotional win that came as she and Algerian boxer Imane Khelif have been embroiled in a major row over their gender eligibility.
Tennis was introduced to China in the 1860s, but it failed to gain mass appeal and was largely an elite sport reserved for the wealthiest families.
The Australian Olympic Committee has decried a "misleading and bullying" online petition that described Gunn's performance as "unethical" and questioned how she was chosen for Paris.
The athletes, fresh from a national record 53 Olympic medal trawl, were asked about absent colleague b-girl Rachael "Raygun" Gunn.
Khelif was the centre of a gender controversy at the Olympics on her way to the women's 66kg title.
Jamaica were in third spot after the opening leg, but Andrenette Knight dropped the baton after bumping Ireland's Rhasidat Adeleke on the second leg.
The USA's dream team of NBA superstars held off France 98-87 to take their tally of men's Olympic basketball golds to 17.
China claimed their fifth gold from five competitions at the Games.
Tebogo triumphed over U.S. sprinters Kenny Bednarek and Noah Lyles to claim Africa's first 200m title and become the fifth-fastest man in history over the distance.
Davis-Woodhall, who was sixth at the Tokyo Olympics, tasted global victory for the first time when she won the world indoor title in March.
Andrade clinched the last gymnastics gold medal at the Paris Olympics on Monday, and captivated the minds and hearts of football-obsessed Brazil.
Lyles finished in third place in the 200m on Thursday, dashing his hopes of a sprint double.
The 26-year-old pipped Britain's Matthew Hudson-Smith.
Tebogo, also a finalist in the 100m, struck a psychological blow to Lyles, crossing the line in 19.96sec, while Lyles timed 20.08sec.
The 31-year-old Li beat Theerapong Silachai of Thailand by 7kg with Hampton Morris of the United States third, another 5kg back.
Two-time defending champions China only finished sixth.
The brothers made a late break for glory and crossed the line in a time of 6:32.66, 0.45 seconds ahead of the British crew.
Sagen Maddalena from the United States wins the silver while China's Zhang Qiongyue took the bronze.
