Chinese gymnasts' age investigation ramps up

BEIJING -- The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) just announced that it would ask the Chinese gymnastics federation to "submit further documents" to clarify the ages of three women gymnasts whose Olympic eligibility has been questioned.

The names of gymnasts He Kexin, Yang Yilin and Jiang Yuyuan have appeared on various government documents with birth dates that differed from the passports submitted to FIG last February. The IOC rule requires gymnasts to be 16 or to turn 16 this year in order to qualify for participation in the Beijing Games.

Earlier Friday the International Olympic Committee requested that FIG again review information on those passports. Despite information published by several media sources including the Los Angeles Times last month, FIG officials previously had said they were satisfied with the passports submitted by the Chinese gymnastics federation.

But after a Times of London story, relying on the same documents, appeared Friday, the IOC requested that FIG recheck the information.

-- Diane Pucin

Photo: Fans line up Friday to snap pictures of the Chinese gymnastics team prior to a news conference at the Samsung Pavilion at the Beijing Games. Credit: Rob Carr / Associated Press

Comments

[zack]

This "investigation" is a farce. Why are we giving the Chinese the opportunity to present more doctored documents? Let's call a spade a spade and be done with it all.

[Jeff]

most troubling aspect is that the International Olympic Committee was not going to even investigate until the girls' cover was completely blown and it had no choice.

What is going on here when a Euro, American, or African gets suspended quite easily, but the IOC is scared shitless of the Chinese?

[Tom L]

It's not going to matter. China's never going to admit they lied. No one in China will admit they lied (for fear that they would disappear for "re-engineering"). So FIG will look over some passports, so birth certificates, and interview people and decide they're legit. How couldn't they be? If the government that makes all of the passports and official documents in the country can't forge them correctly, who could? I wish the truth would come out, but it won't.

[JustChuck]

You just gotta love this. It's great theater. The FIG approaches the Chinese gymnastics federation and says the following: "We believe the official documents you submitted proving your gymnasts are of the appropriate age have been falsified. Please submit more official documents so we may investigate this." Hmmm. I wonder what the additional documents will show.

[Randock]

If you're under 13, you can't participate in this message board - but you can win a gold medal in the Olympics :)

[paul mortimore]

What purpose does an age restriction for Olympic competition serve? Will it truly serve the interests of the athelite or the country that wants to better its showing for poor performance? The IOC should confine itself to recommending such things as age limitation sans penalty provisions. Nations recommend age limits for pregnancy, but none that I know, decline to accept perfect performance with outstanding results.. Include God himself!

[chandra]

The age should have been verified by a scientific method and not by asking the Chinese government to provide new documents. It is not the gymnast who is responsible for the cheating, rather, the cheating is mainly done by the government. Therefore, the documents provided by the government can't be considered reliable because they can create it all false.

Besides, I am amazed to see the inability of Chinese mass to recognize the Olympic rules and coming with all the excuses to justify the cheating. Perhaps, that's also one of the reasons why people consider them unethical.

[Peter Bacon]

The Chinese are the best in the world at forgering . They did invent paper, gun powder and a few other things. They cheated. Case closed. Peter-International Judge

[Jeremy]

China will probably just doctor the other documents as well. The sad thing is that China is teaching these kids that it is acceptable to lie and be deceitful to the entire world. That says something about Chinese ethics if their govenment is willing to falsify documents just to win a medal.

[BJ Jiang]

I think all this suggests the losers are sore losers. Michael Phelps has secretly doped and escaping current detection because they ran the new doping method against all existing official testing methods and found they cannot be detected yet. Why don't they investigate into this matter? If they store his blood sample for 10 years and test it again when more advanced tests are available, they will be able to remove all his 8 medals. Of course, it is the USA, no one is going to ask for it...

[Snyder 1]

This has nothing to do with international ethics or Americans being "sore losers." Simply stated: Americans hate cheaters! Name an American athlete who was caught cheating, and I'll show you a severely damaged reputation. Just ask Barry Bonds.

What's done is done, but go to this site to decide for yourself...

http://strydehax.blogspot.com/2008/08/hack-olympics.html

[Former Gymnast]

When the US doesn't win the team gold, does that mean someone has to be cheating? These Chinese Gymnasts are incredible, and we are fortunate to be able to watch them. Maybe the rest of the word can learn from them. I know from experience that most of the advanced technique has come from China, Japan, Russia, and Romania, and was rejected by American judges for many years. I know from many conversations with judges as a competitor and as a coach that they held an unearned arrogance in their knowledge, or lack thereof, about biomechanics and were way behind the curve regarding the most current techniques, and deducted myself and my gymnasts for "correct technique" and encouraged poor technique that actually in some cases have caused injuries. Now that those techniques are being recognized and rewarded, we had the opportunity to watch those skills performed to perfection by the Chinese females, we should just say thank you or Wow. So, since the American's didn't win, the Chinese must have cheated? Give me a break. The American females missed some routines and deserved and won the silver during the team competition. Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson showed poise and class in the individual competition and came back to perform solidly earning individual gold, isn't that enough? I don't think an investigation or stripping medals would change the impression of the talent level of the Chinese gymnasts. Beside, Asians look younger than caucasions naturally. Ask me, I still get carded, and I'm old.

[He Kexin]

Hello all, I want let you know that I actually 12 year old, but since Chinese government own me, I do what they say. For last 8 year I do nothing but gymnastic because my family will be killed if I fail. Please don't find anymore document, I don't want to "disappear".

[Haley Box]

It's not about Americans being sore losers. Every American and I'm sure people from other countries were all thinking the same thing when they saw those girls on the television. "THEY'RE LIKE, WHAT?! NINE!" Seriously, even if America won the gold, China still cheated and would have probably still beat someone in the process. It's not that they won, it's the principle of the matter. Those girls aren't sixteen, China lied. It's that simple.

[Gold Medalist]

It's evident, the Chinese womans gymnastics team defeated the U.S.A.! The Chinese deserve the Gold Medal! HOWEVER, those three gymnasts indeed look underage, and a full investigation should be performed. After reading all of the responses, it is apparent the Chinese government will falsify ANY document to defend its "uprising" economy. Moreover, IF these girls are found to be underage, they should undoubtly be stripped of their medals and disqualified from future olympics, including all coaches. This is an outrage to young girls trying to become a great olympian, and even so for boys. A full investigation is needed on this matter, but will the truth actually be presented on the Chinese side? We'll have to wait until the next coming weeks or so...TBC...

[Tina B]

Chinese team won that medal fair and square, lets end that argument there, they were almost flawless and the whole world saw Sacramone's falls...

UNeven bars and vault is just another story...They tied, they freaking tied, yet Nastia (who stuck a better landing, beautiful lines...tied? while He separated her legs, took a step in her landing, got gold? that's BS) gets silver? the FIG tiebreak method fails...big time...vault, the whole world saw Cheng's misplaced hands on the vault, the whole world saw her land on her knees...personal note, next Olympics, i'll just land on my knees if i get tired, i'll still get Bronze...and Sacramone did well, she took a step in her landing, yet "missed" the podium? BS, once again...

i agree with Tom L...they are never gonna admit it...too damaging to the "face", plus if they know they're gonna get caught, why did they do it?

don't curse at the Chinese girls though, feel sorry for them...by the next Olympics, they'll be 18/20 or w/e they say now...but they'll be off the team, replaced by a new batch of underaged gymnasts...with 1.3 billion people, not that hard to find "talent"...but the soon-to-be-ex-gymnasts will be robbed of their life...i can guarantee you that those girls spend so much time training...they don't even have time for education...so by age 20...so young, yet tired from all the injuries, may not live a good life anymore....

sad

and sore losers? please...look at what happened to Marion Jones...ouch man...

one more thing...just out of curiosity, have any chinese gymnasts participate in the world championships?

[Bla]

Aren't you suppose to be "innocent until proven guilty"? Why is this blog going on like the Chinese are guilty of lying? Is it because you want the Chinese to lie?