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China stripped of gymnastics medal from 2000 Olympics; bronze goes to U.S.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Ten years after its gymnastics team won an Olympic bronze medal in Sydney, China was ordered to give it back for using an underage girl, allowing the United States to claim it instead.
Acting on evidence that Dong Fangxiao was only 14 at the 2000 Games, the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday stripped the country of its third-place finish.
Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year to be eligible.
"Justice prevailed," said Dominique Dawes, who will now have a medal from each of her three Olympics and four overall. "My teammates are very well-deserving of the bronze medal, and I'm sure each and every one of us will be thrilled. We will cherish it."
The age-falsification issue drew attention in 2008, when media reports suggested some of the girls on host China's gold-medal-winning Olympic team in Beijing could have been as young as 14. The IOC ordered the International Gymnastics Federation to investigate.
Its probe cleared the Beijing gymnasts in October 2008. But the FIG said it wasn't satisfied with "the evidence provided to date" for Dong and a second Sydney gymnast, Yang Yun.
Dong's accreditation information for the Beijing Olympics, where she worked as a national technical official, listed her birthday as Jan. 23, 1986. That would have made her 14 in Sydney too young to compete. Her birth date in the FIG database is listed as Jan. 20, 1983.
China stripped of gymnastics medal from 2000 Olympics; bronze goes to U.S. | Olympics News | Sports News | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News
China loses gymnastic medal - BostonHerald.com
Other Sports | Olympics: China stripped of 2000 gymnastics bronze | Briefs | Seattle Times Newspaper
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Ten years after its gymnastics team won an Olympic bronze medal in Sydney, China was ordered to give it back for using an underage girl, allowing the United States to claim it instead.
Acting on evidence that Dong Fangxiao was only 14 at the 2000 Games, the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday stripped the country of its third-place finish.
Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year to be eligible.
"Justice prevailed," said Dominique Dawes, who will now have a medal from each of her three Olympics and four overall. "My teammates are very well-deserving of the bronze medal, and I'm sure each and every one of us will be thrilled. We will cherish it."
The age-falsification issue drew attention in 2008, when media reports suggested some of the girls on host China's gold-medal-winning Olympic team in Beijing could have been as young as 14. The IOC ordered the International Gymnastics Federation to investigate.
Its probe cleared the Beijing gymnasts in October 2008. But the FIG said it wasn't satisfied with "the evidence provided to date" for Dong and a second Sydney gymnast, Yang Yun.
Dong's accreditation information for the Beijing Olympics, where she worked as a national technical official, listed her birthday as Jan. 23, 1986. That would have made her 14 in Sydney too young to compete. Her birth date in the FIG database is listed as Jan. 20, 1983.
China stripped of gymnastics medal from 2000 Olympics; bronze goes to U.S. | Olympics News | Sports News | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News
China loses gymnastic medal - BostonHerald.com
Other Sports | Olympics: China stripped of 2000 gymnastics bronze | Briefs | Seattle Times Newspaper
