Chinese Gymnastics Team

August 13th, 2008 filed in Olympics

Chinese Gymnasts Cheating?

**UPDATE** - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has requested that the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) investigate the ages of the Chinese Gymnasts mentioned in the paragraph below. If they were found to be underage, they would then be disqualified and their medals stripped. Once again it looks like cheaters may get caught. Unfortunately for the young girls in question, in this case the real cheaters may be the Government, and not the Athletes.

The Chinese Gymnastics Team is under scrutiny at the Beijing Olympics due to possible cheating. The scandal has been brewing for several weeks, but is beginning to boil over as mainstream media has picked up the story. The center of the controversy is the debated ages of their competing gymnasts. Apparently as many as 3 of the 6 members of the team could be less than the 16 years required for competition. China has produced passports for the three, He Kexin, Jiang Yuyuan, and Yang Yilin which state they are each eligible for the games. However contradictory evidence has been found in several Chinese Government sources.

In its report from November 3rd 2007, Xinhua identified He Kexin as one of “10 big new stars” who made a splash at China’s Cities Games. It gave her age as 13 and reported that she beat Yang Yilin on the uneven bars at those games. A May 23 story in the China Daily newspaper, the official English-language paper of the Chinese government, said He was 14. The story was later updated to list her as 16.

Yang Yilin was born Aug. 26, 1993, according to the official 2004, 2005 and 2006 national registration lists previously posted on the General Administration of Sport of China website. On the 2007 registration list, her birthday became Aug. 26, 1992. A list of competitors at a 2007 provincial competition listed Jiang Yuyuan’s birthdate as Oct. 1, 1993. The official passport, Nov. 1, 1991.

More information, including screenshots of the publications mentioned above can be found here.

So did the Chinese Women BEAT the American Women, or did they CHEAT? Tell us what YOU think.

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28 Responses to “Chinese Gymnastics Team”

Pages: [3] 2 1 » Show All

  1. 28
    Peter Says:
    November 12th, 2008 at 5:46 pm

    Rules are made and it is up to the governing bodies to ensure they are enforced. The Olympic governing body should vet competitors prior the Games, or be ready to bare the responsibility for that neglect. Having said that, if an athlete takes part in any sport and proves themselves to be the best, then it is right that they keep the titles and medals they were awarded. It is unfair to expand the time scale of investigating so-called cheats, we could then go back to the times when east-european female athletes more resembled men. The Games are meant to bring nations together, this squabbling is driven by politics and not in the spirit of the Games.

  2. 27
    Rick Says:
    August 25th, 2008 at 11:29 am

    “Ivar Nelson says If you think about it, the Chinese with 1.3 billion people should have won at least 4 times the number of medals as the “little” USA with 300 million

    You’re an idiot. You’re assuming all 1.3 billion Chinese are born into a modern society. Have you seen the mountainside towns and farms in China? Do you really think these people/children have the opportunities of those of that in the USA? Wake up and smell the garbage coming out of your mouth and go brush your teeth.

  3. 26
    Anonymous Says:
    August 24th, 2008 at 6:14 pm

    Oh hay cheaters:

    http://file.sunshinepress.org:54445/chinese-olympic-age-fraud-data-2008.html

  4. 25
    Paul Says:
    August 24th, 2008 at 4:49 pm

    Im with Cindy on this, if you have to find faults other their their performance then they must really be the GREATEST GYMNAST! Get a life and move on. The Girls were awesome and now lets look forward to 2012. The Chinese Girls Rule and won. They age is not in Controversy it is all the teams that didn’t win have to find a reason they didn’t win. Life is to precious to dwell on a day or two.

  5. 24
    leg5 Says:
    August 24th, 2008 at 2:36 pm

    I noticed that one of the Chinese girls gymnatics team member have not even grown their permanent teeth yet.That was one of the first things I noticed. All 16 year olds have their permanent teeth and that is a fact. The only reason they may not is if they had some genetic issue perhaps.

  6. 23
    Ivar Nelson Says:
    August 24th, 2008 at 2:21 pm

    If you think about it, the Chinese with 1.3 billion people should have won at least 4 times the number of medals as the “little” USA with 300 million. Conclusion: There is a higher percentage of world-class athletes in the USA than there is in China. Any rational comments?

  7. 22
    Kibbles Says:
    August 24th, 2008 at 2:00 pm

    oops clicked too soon.

    As for the Team USA I think in fairness - even awarding a second gold and make them be tied.

    Individual golds won by underagers should be stripped and re-awarded.

  8. 21
    Kibbles Says:
    August 24th, 2008 at 1:58 pm

    Why does it feel like the Soviet Union & the East German Sports Machine all over again?

    I feel for the Chinese team members because they are victims of abuse. Mainly by the government, but also by the parents whom are also victims.

Pages: [3] 2 1 » Show All

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