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Her face etched with pain, a child trains for Olympic glory while her gymnastics trainer stands on her legs.

The cartoon space rockets and animal astronauts on her tiny red leotard are a stark and powerful reminder of this little girl's tender age as she trains as hard as any adult athlete in the Western world.

Nanning Gymnasium in Nanning, China, is one of many ruthless training camps across the country to which parents send their children to learn how to be champions.

∞∞∞ wrote:Any nation that trains like this shouldn't be allowed to participate in international competitions. The IOC really needs to cut down on this crap 'cause it doesn't encompass what the spirit of the Olympics mean. I'm not against toughening kids up through competition and pushing them to their limits, but this is ridiculous.

BlueHen86 wrote:

∞∞∞ wrote:Any nation that trains like this shouldn't be allowed to participate in international competitions. The IOC really needs to cut down on this crap 'cause it doesn't encompass what the spirit of the Olympics mean. I'm not against toughening kids up through competition and pushing them to their limits, but this is ridiculous.

Someone needs to put their foot down, oh wait, that's the problem here isn't it.

GannonFan wrote:Super story on the Chinese winning synchronized diver - they waited until after she won the gold to tell her that both her grandparents had died and that her Mom had cancer. Thing is, her grandparents died a year ago - they didn't want to interrupt her training in the year lead up to the Olympics. For synchronized diving.

Ibanez wrote:

GannonFan wrote:Super story on the Chinese winning synchronized diver - they waited until after she won the gold to tell her that both her grandparents had died and that her Mom had cancer. Thing is, her grandparents died a year ago - they didn't want to interrupt her training in the year lead up to the Olympics. For synchronized diving.

That's messed up.

But others, including former North Korean athletes who have defected, suggest the success of the country's small contingent of athletes at the games may be the result of a policy of training them from a very young age at specialized schools, backed up by rewards like cars and refrigerators for winners and the threat of labor camps for losers.

"I won first place because the shining Supreme Commander Kim Jong Un gave me power and courage," he told reporters in London.

An Kum-Ae, who won her gold in the women's judo 52-kilogram division, said, "I cannot be any happier than right now for I can give my gold medal to our great leader, Kim Jong Un."

Hand-picked by the Communist Party's Sports Committee, the athletes are trained at very young ages and registered at specialized schools which provide "daily meals and spending money at times," said Gu-Kyeong Bang, a defector living in South Korea.

GannonFan wrote:Super story on the Chinese winning synchronized diver - they waited until after she won the gold to tell her that both her grandparents had died and that her Mom had cancer. Thing is, her grandparents died a year ago - they didn't want to interrupt her training in the year lead up to the Olympics. For synchronized diving.

BlueHen86 wrote:

GannonFan wrote:Super story on the Chinese winning synchronized diver - they waited until after she won the gold to tell her that both her grandparents had died and that her Mom had cancer. Thing is, her grandparents died a year ago - they didn't want to interrupt her training in the year lead up to the Olympics. For synchronized diving.

Or, in the case of her grandparents, sychronized dying.