Olympians Fearful of Chinese Food Chemicals

Beijing insists meat is safe, but Americans will brown-bag it

(NEWSER) - China says it's a "pity" that US athletes won't be joining their international counterparts at dinner tables during the Olympics this summer over worries about the safety of food and water. American athletes will ship in their own meat and eat at their own training center, and China is none too happy about the snub, says the Washington Post. Reports of meat stuffed with chemical additives and bacteria-filled water have scared the US off. More»

Government, corporations give athletes big bucks on top of Olympic glory

(NEWSER) - Decades ago, bringing glory to the motherland would have been the sole reward for victorious Chinese Olympians. The glory is still there—plenty of it, as China leads the gold medal table—but champions can now expect an average reward of $300,000 in cash and bonuses, even before corporate sponsorship deals roll in, the Los Angeles Times reports. More»

80% are jobless, injured, or impoverished

(NEWSER) - Zhao Yonghua was a Chinese national skiing champion and won several gold medals. But now, at 31, she is bedridden from diabetes, exacerbated by overtraining. With no hope of recovery or employment, the former star finally had to sell one of her gold medals to raise money for treatment. As NPR reports, Zhao is only one of many athletes whose lives have been upended in pursuit of sporting glory. More»

Government mandates names as squeamish tourists descend

(NEWSER) - The Chinese government is issuing a list of revised names for some of the country's more obliquely translated dishes in preparation for the wave of tourists the Beijing Olympics will draw this August, the New York Times reports.

• A disconcerting plate of “husband-and-wife lung slices” will be rechristened as a slightly more appetizing "pork lungs in chili sauce"
• The bizarre "ants climbing up a tree" will now be a more straightforward “sautéed vermicelli with spicy minced pork”

Injured athletes pressured to keep training

(NEWSER) - China is going all-out in a sometimes destructive push to top the medal table at the Beijing Olympics, the New York Times reports. Athletes are risking their health by training while injured, and potential medal-winners are being pressed out of retirement. Olympic hopefuls are well aware that victory will bring fame and fortune—and failure a huge "loss of face" for the motherland. More»