Liu Xiang sent to Olympic death by China's £1 billion image-building exercise

Telegraph ^ | 08/20/08 | Kevin Garside

[TigerLikesRooster]

Liu Xiang sent to Olympic death by China's £1 billion image-building exercise

On the back of yesterday's China Daily, the English language newspaper in Beijing, the face of Liu Xiang filled a broadsheet page. But the tears had been airbrushed out, so to speak.

By Kevin Garside

Last Updated: 2:54PM BST 20 Aug 2008

Comments 29 | Comment on this article

China's Olympic pin-up was selling the Nike brand and his country. He is the face of Nike in China, and of China across the globe. He didn't develop an ankle spur, injure his Achilles or damage his hamstring on the way to the blocks in the heats of the 110m hurdles. He was sent to his Olympic death by a regime that knew his injuries were terminal.

We should not be surprised. The episode illustrates the game China is in. The Olympics in Beijing are an exercise in impression management, a £1 billion-plus ad. Appearances are everything.

It was not Xiang who was competing but China itself. China could not be seen to be weak, impaired or flawed. Having spent seven years and ten figures reworking its public image, China could not afford to be without the central figure around which the narrative is spun, the man who has come to embody the new China.

[Always Right]

So which one was hurting really?

You don't think an athlete could have multiple injuries? Perhaps he was faking because he knew he couldn't win and wanted an excuse, but we don't know what kind of threats or pressure he was under.

[TigerLikesRooster]

Both thighs and both heels. While it is not impossible, for an athlete whose health is constantly under close scrutiny, it is hard to believe.

Yes, I suspect he was under severe pressure and want to have an 'orderly way out.' If that was the case, his acting should have been better choreographed.:-)

[IronJack]

Even Yao Ming has to give half of all his NBA pay and any money he makes from sponsorships to the Chinese government.

I'll bet Michael Jordan has to "give" MORE than half of his income to OUR government! At least China has the guts to ADMIT that it's communist.

[squonk]

Seriously. This shows us that without Freedom, we are nothing

Big Bump

[reagandemocrat]

>>>Liu’s face was plastered all over China in commercials and numerous corporate sponsorships such as Nike, Coca-Cola, Visa, Cadillac<<<

What gives here?

Is Liu committed to Nike et al, or is he committed to the ChiComms and these companies controlled by the ChiComms?

I watched the beach volleyball last night and noticed that both the US and Chinese ladies wore the Nike ‘swooshtica’. Coke and Nike are all over the Olympics.

Is this what globalism looks like?

I appreciate your take on this.

RD

[TigerLikesRooster]

The article says that Liu has sponsorship contracts with Nike and other multinationals, but I suspect he also has similar contracts with other (probably Chinese) companies.

For China's sports bureaucracy, Liu is the cash cow just like Yao Ming .

[dfwgator]

He’s no Shun Fujimoto, who in 1976, competed with a broken leg to help the Japanese Men’s Gymnastics team to win the Gold Medal.

[bruinbirdman]

"For China's sports bureaucracy, Liu is the cash cow just like Yao Ming ."

NBC, overt mouthpiece for the ChiComs, proudly tells us how "capitalist" these commies are and how much they earn in endorsements. Heck, the female springboard diver gets $2.3 in endorsements and modeling fees.

yitbos