Moreover, the process of the “great changes unseen in a century” has endowed the Olympics with a completely different connotation. The Chinese people watching the Olympics have also gained new insights and experiences from it: objectively speaking, no matter how good China’s subjective intentions are, the United States has used its advantageous capabilities to shape the Olympics as a microcosm of the strategic competition between China and the United States in the economic and sports fields. This competition is not only a battle for gold medals on the field, but also a comprehensive competition in global influence, national image, and the right to speak on the rules.

To be objective, since the time of Coubertin, the Olympics have objectively always been a stage for displaying national strength and national pride. Against the background of the strategic competition between China and the United States, the Paris Olympics has gone beyond the traditional sporting event and has been constructed by the United States as a new arena for the China-US competition.

The Greek athletes who participated in the first Olympic Games in 1896

One of the key issues of this Olympics is the strict implementation of doping and its testing, which is a focal point of the China-US strategic competition: the strategy chosen by the United States is the weaponization of doping testing, that is, first to discredit Chinese athletes through disinformation in the mainstream Western media; then, by competing with organizations like WADA, force Chinese athletes to accept testing that can interfere with normal competition, while maintaining a significantly more relaxed attitude towards Western athletes; and finally, leveraging the soft power it has gained from long-term ideological and cultural colonization on global, especially Chinese social media platforms, to systematically encircle China.

The foreign media did not fully notice some indicative “account deletion” incidents, but the biggest gain for the Chinese people is the realization that the previous inappropriate practices based on misinformation and cultural differences in international norms and competitive rules must be effectively corrected. This awareness and its spread are expected to have a more far-reaching and profound impact on China-US relations.

NOTE about “account deletion” incidents
Chinese netizens found an account on Weibo with the screen name “Medley” and found that the account posted many “dangerous remarks,” including mocking the Chinese Air Force’s J-10 accident. In addition, “Medley” published an article during the Olympic Games to analyze the issue of Chinese sports fans saying that “the American swimming team was suspected of turning purple after the game”, saying that the real situation he saw on the spot was different from that of Chinese netizens.The inconsistencies seen on television allude to the Chinese broadcast platform’s deliberate efforts to “color” American athletes and create public opinion. After his Weibo account was reported, Yuan Haoran urgently deleted Weibo and even blocked the account.

The ranking of the gold medal table is also one of the visualized focal points of this competition. Cognitively, the Chinese people, athletes, coaches, and relevant departmental staff have long been indoctrinated with the customized version of information and knowledge, instilling the advanced, postmodern cognition of “friendship first, competition second”, and “gold medals are not important, medals are not important” has also served as a hallmark of the “progressiveness” of Western countries, long dominating the discourse around the Olympics.

At the 2024 Paris Olympics, the West’s “meticulous competition” over the medal tally, ranking, and other areas was undisguised. For China, this represented a cognitive awakening – the Chinese people became aware of the existence of indoctrination, and began to systematically reflect on the Chinese media, relevant government agencies, and active netizens who failed to awaken in time and continued to indoctrinate the Chinese public in the guise of “spokespersons” – a uniquely Chinese-style online movement truly led by the people.

This substantive cognitive awakening, combined with the outstanding performance of the new generation of Chinese athletes, has demonstrated the path of the China-US strategic competition in an alternative way: China must make substantive adjustments to its own cognitive and behavioral patterns while competing strategically with the US, in order to truly adapt to the new landscape of the China-US strategic game. This can also be seen as one of the most important strategic tasks of China’s new era of reform and opening up.

The Paris Olympics has become a new arena for China-US competition, deeply reflecting the increasingly intense confrontation between the two countries on the international stage. Competitive sports are no longer just a contest of skills and physical abilities, but have become an important means of showcasing national soft power and maintaining international image. In this context, every event and match at the Paris Olympics has become part of the China-US strategic game. Whether it’s doping testing, the medal tally ranking, or the fight for discourse power in international sports organizations, the competition between China and the US has extended to every corner of the Olympics, becoming part of the global strategic competition.

The Chinese men’s 4x100m medley relay team won the gold, breaking the 40-year American monopoly in this event

This process is actually the result of the US-led construction, and China has the very typical characteristics of “being squeezed – deeply stimulated – awakened – counteracted”. That batch of so-called “internationalized” Chinese elites who were shaped by the unequal power relationship in a special period are also undergoing scrutiny from the Chinese public in this game scenario, with only one standard: whether they have sufficient ability to take visible actions to properly safeguard China’s national interests. Individuals who are overly “internationalized” or even “sanctified” will be systematically evolved and replaced in this process.

Historian Niall Ferguson, who has used the traditional label of the “Thucydides Trap” to seek a fashionable cover for China’s strategic competition, pointed out in an article on the Paris Olympics and China-US strategic competition that the Olympics has become a symbol of China-US strategic competition, similar to the rivalry between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. However, while Ferguson’s analysis reveals the competition between China and the US at the Olympics, it ignores the fundamental differences in their understanding of this competition.

China sees the Paris Olympics as a fair competition platform under the leadership of fair international rules, emphasizing respect for and compliance with the rules. At least until the US proves through concrete actions that China’s understanding is wrong, China believes this way. From China’s perspective, the Olympics is not only a stage for showcasing national strength, but also a symbol of international cooperation and the spirit of sports. Therefore, when controversies or misunderstandings arise, Chinese officials and media often prioritize how to convince their own athletes and spectators to accept and recognize international rules. This attitude not only reflects China’s respect for the international order, but also reflects its desire to gain global recognition by complying with the rules.

In the sports philosophy of China, when facing international events like the Olympics, the mentality is to accept and learn international rules, seeking “recognition and acceptance” from the international community. In this process, China’s early elite have distinct pro-US and pro-European characteristics. The rules formulated by Europe and the US, including changes to the rules, are seen as the “necessary components” of the “self-evident international society”, unless they truly touch upon the bottom line of survival. The Chinese government and sports circles attach great importance to the advocacy of the sports spirit, believing that only under the premise of fair competition can the country’s honor be a source of pride. Therefore, when Chinese athletes encounter adverse rulings, including the weaponization and abuse of doping tests, which are overly lenient towards the US, the reaction from the Chinese side, such as the person who deleted their account under the gaze of all netizens, is first to use a strong and typical “gaslighting” approach to ensure that athletes and the public can understand and accept these rulings, rather than blaming or questioning the rules themselves.

However, the American perspective is starkly different. Ferguson likened the Paris Olympics to the US-Soviet competition during the Cold War, a metaphor that to some extent reveals the US view of the current China-US competition. For the US, the Paris Olympics is not only a sporting event, but also part of the global hegemonic struggle. The US political circles and media tend to view the competition for gold medals as a symbol of national strength, and use it to maintain their global leadership position.

Therefore, in the US understanding, the Olympics is not only a competition platform, but also a tool to maintain the global power structure. So the US has no interest in competing with China, the US only has an interest in winning the competition with China. When it comes to the Olympics, this means the US wants to win as many gold medals as possible, while using various means to prevent China from winning gold medals. Driven by this Cold War mentality, the US not only engages in fierce competition with China in the gold medal standings, but also closely monitors Chinese athletes through global anti-doping agencies, even being accused of “weaponizing” these agencies to suppress China’s sports achievements. In addition, the US media’s smear campaigns against Chinese athletes also frequently appear, which not only affects the international image of Chinese athletes, but also further exacerbates the antagonism between China and the US.

Former Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps attended a hearing, saying the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has not tested Chinese athletes enough. However, in just 10 days in France, the Chinese swimming team underwent nearly 200 drug tests

The US understanding of the Paris Olympics seems more like a return to the US-Soviet competition during the Cold War. Within this framework, the US sees sports as part of strategic competition, using various means, including public opinion, rule interpretation, and the influence of international organizations, to ensure it has the upper hand in this competition. This approach not only reflects the US’s anxiety over its hegemonic position, but also reflects its defensive posture in the face of China’s rise: clearly in many areas, the US has no effective strategies and means other than leveraging its distinctive “capital-technology” model, including but not limited to the “purple face team”, to win the competition.

Through the observation of the Paris Olympics, it is not difficult to find that there are fundamental differences in the ideological views between China and the US on global affairs: China tends to improve its global status by abiding by and integrating into the existing international rule system, while the US tends to maintain its leadership position by modifying rules or exerting strong pressure. In other words, China focuses on procedural justice, while the US, while ostensibly emphasizing procedures and rules, is actually focused on the final outcome, and refuses to accept any result other than a US victory. In this respect, it has a similar essence to the Trump’s view of the presidential election results.

Looking at the Olympics, the performance of China and the US at the Paris Olympics reveals their different understandings of rules and competition, and this difference in understanding is the core challenge facing the strategic competition between China and the US. China is willing to improve its own strength and status by participating in global competition, while the US seems more inclined to ensure it always remains in the position of the winner, even if it means modifying rules or using informal means to achieve this goal.

On the one hand, China has shown respect for rules and a desire for fair competition. At the Paris Olympics, Chinese athletes followed the rules set by international sports organizations and strived for outstanding results through tireless effort and training. When faced with unsatisfactory results, China usually chooses to acknowledge and accept them, rather than questioning the rules or attempting to change the competition outcome. For China, competition is not just about winning, but about enhancing its own strength and accumulating experience through competition, so as to perform better in future events.

This reflects China’s traditional virtue of gentleness and restraint in the field of competitive sports, but this behavior has not been recognized and accepted by the West,  and has even further aggravated the attacks from the West: because of this gentleness, there is no substantive retaliation, so the cost of the attacks tends to be infinitesimal, and the benefit tends to be unlimited. This perception has historical significance, reflecting China’s journey of self-restraint to achieve its own development, but now is the time to adjust this kind of cognition!

Ironically, the US suppression of China has been constantly dispelling the historical misconceptions formed in China, and although it may currently face some challenges and pressures, as long as the Chinese people systematically complete this “disenchantment” and awakening, and with time, through our efforts, China will eventually be able to turn the situation around step by step.

At the Paris Olympics closing ceremony, Chinese athlete Sun Yingsha represented Asian athletes and the world’s athletes to extinguish the Olympic flame

On the other hand, the US attitude towards rules and competition more comprehensively demonstrates the complexity of a decaying hegemony. For the US, victory itself is more important than the fairness of the rules, and the gold medals in sports competitions have become a key anchor for continuously consolidating the US’s confidence in great power competition. The Paris Olympics may become the first occasion for this mindset to erupt, and it is expected that the 2028 Olympics will face even more severe challenges, after all, the US mentality towards seeing Chinese athletes standing on the podium is already very close to that of a certain person in the 1930s, who turned away and refused to shake hands or award the medal after seeing Jesse Owens standing on the podium. Faced with China’s rise, the US is not satisfied with competing fairly with China under the existing rules, but tends to ensure its victory in this competition through means such as modifying rules, manipulating international institutions, or even smearing its opponents. This approach not only undermines the fairness of international rules, but also injects uncertainty into global sports competition.

This US mentality can be extended to its handling of global affairs: the US is more willing to defend its interests through the application of pressure and the use of power, rather than gaining global recognition through fair competition. This behavioral pattern not only exacerbates the international community’s distrust of the US, but also makes the strategic competition between China and the US more complex and unpredictable. China must address this challenge and reshape a more stable and fair competitive environment for the world.

Before the opening of the 2024 Paris Olympics, many people were still lamenting that “the enthusiasm for this Olympics doesn’t seem high”, but who could have imagined that from the controversial opening ceremony to the ups and downs of the “live drama” of the competitions, from the maneuverings of international organizations to the grassroots actions in the internet space, and to the final intense competition on the medal table – to a certain extent, the Paris Olympics brought the world “splendor” and “inspiration” beyond the sports arena this summer.

For the Chinese, we not only saw the confidence, strength and tenacity of the new generation of Chinese youth through the Olympics, criticized the hypocrisy and backwardness of some elitists who are alienated from the masses, but also gained a clearer mind and a more definite path in the larger competition outside the sports arena through the mirror of the sports field. If anyone still believes in the so-called “gold medals don’t matter”, then I would say these are the more precious things that this Olympics has brought us beyond the gold medals

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Meloni also signed a three-year action plan with China’s Premier Li Qiang during her visit,  which includes six agreements in areas such as electric vehicles, renewable energy, industry, food safety, and education. She reiterated her call for more Chinese investment in Italy.

Dongfeng’s upcoming investment in Italy can be seen as a resumption of an abortive attempt by the Italian government earlier this March, when the latter expressed wishes to attract Chinese automakers to establish factories locally. Chinese companies such as BYD, Chery and Great Wall were reportedly on the list of potential recruits. The attempt was thwarted by EU’s then probe into Chinese EV car exports.

Italy’s goal of revitalizing its automotive industry is evidenced by its plan to reach an annual production of 1.3 million vehicles, announced at the beginning of this year. Currently, Italy has only one major automotive manufacturer, Stellantis, which produced about 750,000 vehicles in Italy last year, falling short of the annual target. Hence, the Italian government is casting its gaze on the Chinese automakers who have a reputation in high-quality automobile manufacturing. However, Stellantis is voicing its concern in losing to the Chinese competitors, with its CEO, Carlos Tavares, saying that the group might have to close some of its Italian factories. Well, if you are true proponents of liberalism as you said you were, competition should be welcomed, isn’t it?

Manufacturing Plant of Dongfeng

Moving onto China’s other partners-China’s import and export data for the first seven months of this year shows that the U.S. is only listed as the third largest trade partner of China, trailing behind ASEAN and EU. The total value of China’s goods trade was 24.83 trillion yuan, an increase of 6.2% year-on-year, with an expanding proportion of high-end exports.

Now buckle up for some statistics: In the past seven months, China’s trade with ASEAN totaled 3.92 trillion yuan, up 10.5%, accounting for 15.8% of China’s foreign trade total; trade with the EU totaled 3.22 trillion yuan, up 0.4%, accounting for 13%. Of this, exports to the EU were 2.1 trillion yuan, up 1.5%, while imports from the EU were 1.12 trillion yuan, down 1.5%; the trade surplus with the EU was 985.08 billion yuan, up 5.1%. Trade with the U.S. totaled 2.72 trillion yuan, up 4.1%, accounting for 11%. Of this, exports to the U.S. were 2.04 trillion yuan, up 5.1%, while imports from the U.S. were 683.91 billion yuan, up 1.2%; the trade surplus with the U.S. was 1.35 trillion yuan, up 7.2%.

In terms of export product structure, China exported 8.41 trillion yuan worth of electromechanical products in the first seven months, up 8.3%, accounting for 59% of the total export value. This includes automatic data processing equipment and components at 815.88 billion yuan, up 11.6%; integrated circuits at 640.91 billion yuan, up 25.8%; automobiles at 462.86 billion yuan, up 20.7%; and mobile phones at 454.74 billion yuan, down 1.3%.

Terminal of China

Enough of cold statistics, time for some heartwarming Olympics moments. Amid all the doping accusation at the Chinese team by some American athletes, at least one American football player, Tom Brady, is willing to publicly acknowledge the excellent performance of Chinese athletes. After Chinese divers,  Quan Hongchan and Chen Yuxi won the gold and silver medal respectively in the women’s 10m platform final with Quan winning a perfect 10 from the judges, Brady posted an instagram video, exalting both in English and Chinese “There are people beyond this person, and skies beyond this sky.”

Brady also wrote a long message in the post: “I am amazed by the incredible focus and determination of these athletes, with four years of preparation tested through five spectacular dives! Success is not accidental.”

At 46, Brady is a retired American professional football quarterback who had a 23-year career with the NFL teams, earning Super Bowl MVP five times and is widely regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history.

Instagram Story of Brady

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To some extent, since ancient Greek times, such large-scale competitive sports were originally intended as military exercises, even as substitutes for military confrontations, allowing participants to compete in non-lethal ways.

In the era of cold weapons, at the classical Olympic Games, city-states sent their best warriors to compete in events like the javelin throw, showcasing who could throw the furthest. The message conveyed during wartime was very clear: throwing the javelin far meant strong combat ability. Since the advent of the modern era with hot weapons, we no longer frequently see such contests of martial arts skills and combat techniques. Instead, confrontations are now conducted by pulling the trigger.

In modern warfare, with missiles, it only takes pressing a button to eliminate the enemy from thousands of miles away. There’s a famous scene in the American movie Starship Troopers where a character says, “In space warfare, you just press a button. Why are you still teaching me to throw a knife?” The instructor then asks him to place his hand next to the button and tells everyone to watch closely. He then throws a knife, pinning the character’s hand to the control panel. The instructor explains, “Our job is to pin his hand with the knife before he can press the button.”

Therefore, since ancient times, the Olympics have been a form of non-violent confrontation between nations in the West. The 1936 Olympic Games were held in Berlin at a time when the Nazis had already come to power in Germany, leading to the famous incident involving Jesse Owens. Adolf Hitler was promoting his notorious racial superiority theory. He suggested that the explosiveness, endurance, and stamina of German athletes conveyed through sports competitions were due to the superior genes of the Aryan race. As a result, when the African American athlete Jesse Owens won gold and set records, Hitler refused to shake his hand.

Jesse Owens set a world record of 10.2 seconds on June 20, 1936. | Photo: AP

During the Cold War era, the Olympics became a battlefield between the United States and the Soviet Union. The 2019 Polish film “The Coldest Game” depicts the rivalry between the US and the USSR in the realm of chess. In the movie, President Reagan calls the game venue directly from the White House, asking if they had won. When informed that the Soviet player was leading, the scene cuts to Moscow, where Brezhnev is shown opening his long-cherished whiskey in anticipation of celebrating a Soviet victory. This illustrates that competitive sports naturally carry an undertone of great power rivalry.

A scene from The Coldest Game, with American and Soviet players playing against each other. | Picture: MUBI

Of course, after the Cold War ended, peace and development became the main themes of the era, leading to an emphasis on comfort and relaxation. However, in my view, true relaxation and comfort come only after winning gold medals, securing victories, and achieving good rankings. Especially in the context of the Olympics, blindly promoting self-indulgence and a lie-flat attitude without considering specific competitions is tantamount to giving up.

China also places great importance on the Olympics. In the mindset of the Chinese, the Olympics is supposed to be a fair competition in the international arena, where everyone competes based on a set of established rules and wins through their abilities. Of course, “abilities” refer to those within the allowed scope of the rules and align with the common understanding of competitive sports. Using performance-enhancing drugs, relying on biased judgments by referees, or employing underhanded tactics do not count.

Regarding this Paris Olympics, how should we understand victory and defeat? Certainly, we can applaud human achievements in breaking physical limits in a pure and idealistic way. However, it is also important to clarify which victories and defeats fall under the scope of great power strategic competition, and which events might involve external influences or underhanded tactics. Otherwise, China will inevitably have to compromise and accept unfavorable outcomes passively again and again.

There are several aspects of this year’s Olympics that everyone should pay close attention to.

The first aspect is the weaponization of doping tests. The goal is not to catch doping but to use the testing process to disrupt the training of Chinese athletes and thwart them from performing well. This is then supported by biased media and internet trolls to stigmatize China.

Chinese swimmer Zhang Yufei was interviewed before the competition regarding the doping tests, and she called on the public not to view Chinese swimming with prejudice. |Photo: Xinhua News Agency

Shortly before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, the Chinese swimming team had just arrived in Paris and needed to acclimate to the venue, train, and adjust their physical and psychological conditions for competition. However, each swimmer was subjected to an average of 5-7 urine tests per day, with intervals of a few hours between tests. This routine continued daily, resulting in 200 tests over 10 days, averaging 20 tests per day.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) mandates that in high-risk areas, 75% of athletes should undergo frequent testing, generally three times a day. However, the frequency of testing for Chinese athletes far exceeds this, with conservative estimates being more than double the normal requirement. Additionally, as many as 95% of Chinese athletes were tested.

In such circumstances, the so-called fairness is nothing but bullshit.

American athletes might be tested only three times throughout the entire game, while Chinese athletes face 5-7 tests in a single day. Furthermore, the testing agencies are different: American athletes can be tested by their national anti-doping agency, while Chinese athletes cannot. The New York Times has been propagandizing on the side, repeatedly implying that the food additives tested positve among Chinese athletes are problematic, even though WADA has found no abnormality.

In stark contrast, when American athletes test positive for banned substances that are not on the exemption list, they can often explain it away with common medical conditions such as asthma, ADHD, or congenital heart disease. The punitive mechanism works in such a way that, in the first stage, they are found to be in violation, but in the second stage, the final ruling often exempts them due to claims of food contamination.

This is what we call unfairness. Inside the arena, the weaponized doping testing mechanism disrupts the Chinese team’s training and preparation. Outside the arena, there is overwhelming stigmatization.

Next comes the bullying among athletes. French swimming champion Léon Marchand ignored Chinese coach Zhu Zhigen and refused to shake hands. It was only after the situation escalated and online public opinion overwhelmingly criticized him that Marchand personally visited the Chinese delegation to apologize.

Source: CCTV

In contrast, after a race, Chinese swimmer Wang Shun immediately shook hands with French President Emmanuel Macron, who was watching from the sidelines.

Source: CCTV

Chinese swimmer Pan Zhanle won the gold medal in the 100m freestyle and broke the world record. After the race, Australian coach Brett Hawke had a meltdown, posting a video on Instagram claiming that Pan’s performance was suspicious and insinuating that he must have been doping. However, he later deleted the posts and videos.

Source: The Daily Telegraph

Such Western athletes exhibit passive-aggressive behavior by refusing to shake hands with their Chinese counterparts and intentionally stepping aside, displaying a complete lack of courtesy. Certain coaches engage in bullying Chinese athletes using tactics laced with racial stereotypes and deep-seated racial prejudice. The underlying sentiment seems to be: “This prestigious competition is meant for superior Caucasians to win. How could you inferior Asians possibly win?! There’s no way you could be faster than me, even if I were on drugs! You must be doping too!”

Based on these behaviors, it seems that racial superiority theories did not completely disappear with the downfall of Nazi Germany.

These actions are unfair, contradict the spirit of the Olympics, and violate fundamental sports ethics and morals. Such behaviors were distorted and pathological outcomes resulting from a fearful reaction from the West to China’s rise, compounded by longstanding racism and condescending arrogance towards non-Western countries and people of color.

These actions pollute and desecrate the spirit of the Olympics and the broader sportsmanship for all humanity. This desecration is more severe than the offense to Christianity caused by the display of LGBT values and the lavish Dionysian revelry at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.

The United States, which frequently emphasizes so-called rules, lacks the courage to confront its decline. Facing political decay and deep social polarization, it is unable to effectively address internal issues. Instead, it projects its frustrations onto imagined adversaries, resorting to base and humiliating tactics in sports competitions, and engaging in severe defamation, insults, and smear campaigns against Chinese athletes to vent its sense of defeat and powerlessness.

Fortunately, China’s Generation Z athletes have withstood the pressure, not only fighting back with words but also winning numerous gold medals and breaking several world records, countering these discriminatory and obstructive actions with actual achievements. Otherwise, Western critics would launch a cognitive war to undermine the value of all of China’s achievements.

Therefore, China needs to take several actions. On one hand, athletes must endure the insults and burdens, striving to showcase their top-notch abilities. On the other hand, at the national level, efforts must be made to alleviate the pressure on athletes and to prevent doping tests that aim to interfere with their training and preparations.

China must safeguard its legitimate rights and cannot passively accept the malicious abuse of international rules. Chinese media need to make their voices heard clearly and assertively. This message should be directed at the WADA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ensure their awareness of China’s discontent.

The IOC and the WADA are not entities with supra-sovereign authority, rather, they are NGOs that rely on commercial activities for their existence, particularly for the IOC. If it loses a significant market like China would severely impact its revenue and overall value.

While China is not advocating for a boycott of the Olympics, but to assert itself and negotiate with these organizations. After all, athletes from non-Western countries are all likely to become targets of weaponized doping testing at any moment—just as Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt did in the past.

The distortion of sports rules by the U.S. is already a public nuisance that will not cease on its own. Tolerating such behavior only encourages further escalation, with U.S. legislators already beginning to pressure the WADA. Surely, conscientious individuals worldwide will not tolerate America’s brutal bullying of an international organization. A nation needs to step forward and rally global opposition against such behaviors.

If the U.S. persists in such bullying behavior, it seriously threatens the Olympic spirit. Unless it corrects its mistakes and adopts a proper attitude, it should no longer remain a member of the international Olympic community. The world should unite to expel the bad guy.

China now has the confidence to view the West with an equal attitude, approaching and appreciating these competitions with both confidence and rationality, while keenly identifying any unfairness. The simple aspiration of the Chinese people is the pursuit of a better life. And what is at the core of a better life? It is fairness, fairness, and more fairness.

Today, China, when confronted with these unfair actions and the abuse of anti-doping mechanisms, should not merely resort to the passive resistance of venting emotions or boycotting events. Instead, China should propose its own solutions.

The relevant regulations and rules need to be further improved. To emphasize fairness, it should be completely open and transparent. Which athletes from which countries have applied for drug exemptions, what proportion does this account for in the national team of that country, and how many of those with drug exemptions have won medals? Among those who ranked in the top three, did anyone apply for a drug exemption? Everyone can calculate by themselves.

Of course, to protect athletes’ privacy, there is no need to mention the type of drug or the specific disease, but an identifiable label is required. For instance, place an easily recognizable purple label to mark all the “purple-faced” people among the award-winning athletes.

Many American swimmers’ faces turned purple when the races finished, which aroused widespread curiosity and doubts among netizens on social media. | Source: CCTV

It might not be possible to completely end these privileges, but at the very least, those who benefit from them should be clearly identified. The International Anti-Doping Agency is under significant pressure, but is it too much to ask to mark out these privileges? For the IOC, which seeks to highlight its independence, and for WADA, which aims to emphasize its fairness, as well as for everyone calling for a cleaner, fairer, and more just international sports environment, shouldn’t this be a direction for collective effort?

The WADA is under great pressure from the US. So it might not be possible to completely cancel the privileges, but at the very least, those who are privileged should be clearly identified. Isn’t this supposed to be the common direction of efforts for the IOC which wants to highlight its independence, for the WADA which wants to highlight its fairness, and for all those who call for a cleaner, fairer, and more just international sports environment?

If not feasible this time, how about starting from the next Olympic Games? If it’s not practical next time either, what about a roadmap to give everyone something to look forward to? Is that okay? Improving the relevant rules and regulations as soon as possible is the greatest respect for the Olympic spirit.

Everyone should make their best efforts to create a fairer, more just, and cleaner Olympic environment. In this environment, we can all strive towards the shared values of humanity—higher, faster, stronger, and more united. If you agree that everyone should push for this within their capacity and collectively build a better Olympics with our own hands, it will make the games more enjoyable for all. We can truly celebrate athletes who demonstrate their skills and embody the pure spirit of sports in the pursuit of self-improvement, regardless of their race, ethnicity, or color. I believe this is a goal worth striving for together.

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