ABSTRACT
In January 1998 Chinese swimmers became the target of accusations over drug abuse. Growth hormone was found in a flask in the Chinese swimmer Yuan Yuan’s luggage at Sydney Airport on 8 January,1 and one week later four other swimmers failed the precompetition drug tests2 at the World Swimming Championships in Perth. These events reinforced the long-standing suspicion that the Chinese were involved in a systematic national drug programme and forced Shen Guofan, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, to respond to questions at a press conference in Beijing on 15 January 1998. Drug abuse thus became a political issue. In the words of State Council Commissioner Li Tieying, ‘This scandal brings disgrace to China’s elite sport and damages the nation, its people and eventually the athletes themselves.’3 Thus, at the very moment when China was making its most dramatic impact on world sport, it suffered a serious loss of face.
