Are the Chinese warranted in their outrage and constant drama at the 2024 Paris Olympics?! Take a look at the viral claims, and find out what the facts really are!
Should the Chinese be outraged at 2024 Paris Olympics?!
Many Chinese citizens and netizens worldwide are outraged at what they believe were genuine insults and examples of Sinophobia and blatant racism at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The Chinese swimmers, in particular, were under heavy scrutiny and testing, which many Chinese netizens felt were excessive, while other people felt were justified. After all, 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ) before the Tokyo Olympics, and some of them later tested positive for clenbuterol.
In this article, we will go through the viral claims and videos, and find out if their outrage and constant drama at the 2024 Paris Olympics are warranted, or not.
Recommended : China Unveils New Incentives For Wumao + CCP Uncles!
Chinese outrage + drama at 2024 Paris Olympics fact checked!
Claim : Kyle Chalmers + Jack Alexey disrespected Pan Zhanle
Verdict : Unlikely
Right after he smashed the men’s 100m freestyle world record, Pan Zhanle told Chinese media outlet CCTV (China Central Television) that he was motivated to beat Chalmers and Alexy after they disrespected him:
Unfortunately, no one else could verify Pan’s claims. Not even the Chinese coaches spoke up about the “grave insult” of being splashed by Jack Alexy while standing at the pool side. There is also the inconvenient fact that people standing by the pool side, can and do, get splashed whenever a swimmer does a flip turn…
On top of that, Kyle Chalmers was seen congratulating Pan Zhanle for winning the gold medal, after beating him by a full second. Chalmers even defended Pan against doping concerns. You can read more about this drama in our earlier fact check article.
Recommended : Did Alexy + Chalmers disrespect Pan Zhanle at 2024 Olympics?!
Claim : Western media tried to give Pan Zhanle drugged water
Verdict : False
Chinese netizens are sharing a Douyin video, or its screenshot, which claims that a “Western media person” tried to sabotage Pan Zhanle by offering him water containing drugs after he won the gold medal. That is a completely fabricated story.
If that actually happened, it would have been reported widely and investigated as a crime. It would also have been severely criticised by China, and the Chinese media outlets.
However, there has been no official complaint, and neither Pan Zhanle nor the Chinese Olympics contingent ever claimed that there was an attempt to sabotage his win by giving him water containing drugs. There was also no report of such a crime by the IOC, the French police, or the mainstream media.
You can read more about this ridiculous claim in our fact check article.
Recommended : Did Western media try to sabotage Pan Zhanle with drugs?!
Claim : Leon Marchand refused to shake hands with Chinese coach
Verdict : Just a misunderstanding
This video has gone viral on social media, with many netizens (not just Chinese) criticising French swimmer Leon Marchand for refusing to shake the hand of Chinese swimming coach, Zhu Zhigen.
Recommended : China Caught Lab Workers Paid To Spread Covid-19?!
According to Beijing Youth Daily reporter, Song Xiang (source), Leon Marchand apologised to the Chinese swimming team. He explained that he wasn’t fully paying attention, and thought that Coach Zhu Zhigen was just helping him with the rope. He didn’t realise that the coach was offering a handshake, as he was bending down to slip under the retractable stanchion.
According to Chinese journalist Li Jingling (archive), Leon Marchand apologised twice to the Chinese swimming team, and personally apologised to Zhu Zhigen, saying that he didn’t mean to neglect the coach. Both men hugged and exchanged gifts. So it appears that, while Leon Marchand did indeed ignore the Chinese coach’s handshake as seen in the viral video, it was just a misunderstanding.
Claim : British women divers refused to acknowledge Chinese rivals
Verdict : False
This video clip has gone viral on Chinese social media, and in certain Chinese diaspora groups, claiming to show how British women divers discriminate against their Chinese rivals, by ignoring them and hugging the North Korean women instead.
Recommended : Did Four Taiwan F-16 Fighters Just Defect To China?!
The truth is the Chinese and British divers had already finished their dives earlier, and were waiting for the North Korean women to finish theirs. Any congratulations (or hugs) between the British and Chinese women would have happened before the North Korean women dived.
After the North Korean women finished their dives, the results were announced – they won the silver medal – their country’s first diving medal ever. That was why the British women went over to hug them. It was a historic moment.
Unfortunately, I was unable to locate the full, unedited video, so I cannot “prove” that the British women divers did not “diss” the Chinese women divers. However, I can prove that there is no animosity between the British and Chinese women divers. In fact, Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix and Quan Hongchan have a history of hugging each other!
It appears that, being petite, Quan Hongchan enjoys hugging and being carried like that. That could explain why she had her partner, Chen Yuxi, hug her the same way in that viral video. In fact, Chen Yuxi actually continued hugging her and carrying her out of the pool area!
You can read more about this ridiculous claim in our fact check article.
Recommended : Did British women divers refuse to hug Chinese gold medalists?!
Claim : Western reporter intentionally knocked into Chinese athlete
Verdict : False
This video has also gone viral, with people claiming that it shows a Western reporter intentionally bumping Chinese table tennis champion Wang Chuqin in a racist attack.
The foreign reporter deliberately bumped into our athletes. Look at the reporter’s face. He deliberately bumped into Wang Chuqin. Do you know how difficult it is for our athletes now? This is the racism in the bones of Westerners.
Recommended : Did Four Taiwan F-16 Fighters Just Defect To China?!
The woman was not a reporter. She was a Swedish photographer, which can be confirmed by her grey vest that says “PHOTO 1717”. She can also be seen lugging two large and heavy cameras – one with a long monopod attached, and the other held up to her face.
Two different videos with alternate angles show that the female photographer was swerving to avoid two men coming from the front. They also show that she was looking through the viewfinder of her camera, which was pointed to the left, when she bumped into Chinese table tennis star, Wang Chuqin.
The videos also showed that the photographer was startled when she bumped into Wang Chuqin, and quickly said “Oh, sorry” before swerving away and continuing on her way. Clearly, it was all just an accident, and it was not a racist attack on a Chinese athlete by a Western reporter.
You can read more about this ridiculous claim in our fact check article.
Recommended : Did Western reporter bump Chinese athlete in racist attack?!
I will keep adding more cases as they appear. For certain, there will be more to come, as it looks like the 2024 Paris Olympics is turning into a circus of drama surrounding Chinese athletes!
Please help us FIGHT FAKE NEWS by sharing this fact check article out, and please SUPPORT our work!
Please Support My Work!
Name : Adrian Wong
Bank Transfer : CIMB 7064555917 (Swift Code : CIBBMYKL)
Credit Card / Paypal : https://paypal.me/techarp
Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.
He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.
Recommended Reading
- Is Algerian boxer Imane Khelif a transgender woman?!
- Did Israel use WhatsApp to locate + kill Ismail Haniyeh?!
- Is Stallone opening anti-woke coffee shops to counter Starbucks?!
- Is your watermelon rubbery because it’s fake or GMO?!
- Did Joe Biden + Kamala Harris offer 9/11 terrorists plea deal?!
Go Back To > Fact Check | Sports | Tech ARP
Support Tech ARP!
Please support us by visiting our sponsors, participating in the Tech ARP Forums, or donating to our fund. Thank you!