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FSTargetDrone wrote:I've been watching more and more of the Olympics, and man, well, I don't know, but some of those Chinese female gymnasts look extremely young. Like, 10 year-olds. Or younger. Too young.

Tiananmen Square

Metatwaddle wrote:Not to mention the physical strain: there is no way they can do that many dismounts off the uneven bars and vaults and not fuck up their knees on the landings. I'd guess they're going to have knee problems later in life.

Metatwaddle wrote:It's a little bit scary to think about, honestly. Gymnastics, as RI was pointing out to me tonight, is a really hypercritical sport. The mental strain on these girls has to be unbe-fucking-lievable. Not to mention the physical strain: there is no way they can do that many dismounts off the uneven bars and vaults and not fuck up their knees on the landings. I'd guess they're going to have knee problems later in life.

In an interview with Bob Costas after the team finals, Bela Karolyi was very clear that he thought the age documents were full of shit. It was pretty funny.

hongi wrote:The picture of the Spanish guys doing the slanty eyes thing? It hit the media. Dumb dumb dumb dumb.

Darth Wong wrote:It seems silly to criticize sports for causing injuries and health problems now; it's been doing that for a long time.

If that sort of thing offends you, then you should vote with your dollars by not watching any sport or buying products from sponsors of sports which endanger young people.

Buddha wrote:

hongi wrote:The picture of the Spanish guys doing the slanty eyes thing? It hit the media. Dumb dumb dumb dumb.

They will probably hear about it from their coach and get the "watch your asses" speech. But hey...what's wrong with more acts in this three ring circus, anyway?

thejester wrote:Part of the Olympics I love is getting to watch awesome sports that you would never otherwise see.

Water Polo being the key example. The strength required to play it is amazing - and gotta love the constant dodgy acts off the ball.

Grasscutter wrote:

Buddha wrote:

hongi wrote:The picture of the Spanish guys doing the slanty eyes thing? It hit the media. Dumb dumb dumb dumb.

They will probably hear about it from their coach and get the "watch your asses" speech. But hey...what's wrong with more acts in this three ring circus, anyway?

More like the usual 'I didn't know it was racist everybody should lighten up and drop it' pseudo-apology that gets trotted out whenever something like this happens.

Seriously, what's so hard about saying something like "I'm sorry, I didn't know it was a racist gesture, I'll never do it again now that I know"?

The New York Times quoted Reneses as saying the slit-eye gesture was no more offensive than if the team had posed for an ad standing on their tip toes ahead of playing a taller team.

State-media story fuels questions on gymnast's age

By JOHN LEICESTER
Associated Press Writer

BEIJING (AP) -- Just nine months before the Beijing Olympics, the Chinese government's news agency, Xinhua, reported that gymnast He Kexin was 13, which would have made her ineligible to be on the team that won a gold medal this week.

In its report Nov. 3, Xinhua identified He 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. In the final, "this little girl" pulled off a difficult release move on the bars known as the Li Na, named for another Chinese gymnast, Xinhua said in the report, which appeared on one of its Web sites, http://www.hb.xinhuanet.com

The Associated Press found the Xinhua report on the site Thursday morning and saved a copy of the page. Later that afternoon, the Web site was still working but the page was no longer accessible. Sports editors at the state-run news agency would not comment for publication.

If the age reported by Xinhua was correct, that would have meant He was too young to be on the Chinese team that beat the United States on Wednesday and clinched China's first women's team Olympic gold in gymnastics. He is also a favorite for gold in Monday's uneven bars final.

Yang was also on Wednesday's winning team. Questions have also been raised about her age and that of a third team member, Jiang Yuyuan.

Gymnasts have to be 16 during the Olympic year to be eligible for the games. He's birthday is listed as Jan. 1, 1992.

Chinese authorities insist that all three are old enough to compete. He herself told reporters after Wednesday's final that "my real age is 16. I don't pay any attention to what everyone says."

Zhang Hongliang, an official with China's gymnastics delegation at the games, said Thursday the differing ages which have appeared in Chinese media reports had not been checked in advance with the gymnastics federation.

"It's definitely a mistake," Zhang said of the Xinhua report, speaking in a telephone interview. "Never has any media outlet called me to check the athletes' ages."

Asked whether the federation had changed their ages to make them eligible, Zhang said: "We are a sports department. How would we have the ability to do that?"

"We already explained this very clearly. There's no need to discuss this thing again."

The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) has said repeatedly that a passport is the "accepted proof of a gymnast's eligibility," and that He and China's other gymnasts have presented ones that show they are age eligible. The IOC also checked the girls' passports and deemed them valid.

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 corrected to list her as 16.

"This is not a USAG issue," said Steve Penny, president of USA Gymnastics. "The FIG and the IOC are the proper bodies to handle this."

Zuul wrote:What was it Frankie Boyle said? Gymnastics is paedophilia for cowards? Yeah, can't help but get that vibe, really.

What kills the Karolyis isn’t that the Chinese would risk the health of their children by throwing them out here before their bones and muscles mature. It’s that the Americans won’t allow the Karolyis to do it, too.

The Karolyis couldn’t just lose with dignity. They couldn’t accept their gymnasts’ best. They look across the way and lust over a system that might allow them to trot out a 4-foot-6, 68-pounder who bends and flips with ease. Bela coached Nadia Comaneci to seven perfect 10s in the 1976 Olympics. She was 14.

With glory like that, who would remember all the other little girls who were injured? Who would care?

Win or lose, they have to be the center of attention – from carrying Kerri Strug around for the cameras in Atlanta, to carrying on and on here in Beijing. It feeds their machine, increases their power in USA Gymnastics and convinces another generation of parents that they alone are best to make their tumbling daughter’s dream come true.

“One little girl has (a) missing tooth,” Martha sniffed with indignation at the Chinese, although she would offer no name and admit she “has no proof” of anything.

Later she’d claim, without any substance and lacking facts, that Olympic judges delayed Alicia Sacramone from starting her beam routine in an effort to shake her concentration.