Olympic official: athletes mulling Beijing boycott
Sun Mar 16, 4:04 PM ET
BERLIN (AFP) - International Olympic Committee vice-president Thomas Bach said a number of top athletes were considering boycotting the games in China over the bloody crackdown on protesters in Tibet.
Bach told Bild am Sonntag newspaper he understood the athletes' concerns about the situation in Tibet but said he was advising them to participate.
"They will realise when they assess the situation that it is better to make an appearance than to stay away. That is a symbol that will be noticed by the public," he said.
Asked if human rights had been a concern when Beijing was selected to host the August Games, Bach said the IOC believed the intense focus on China would have a positive effect.
"We are of the opinion that the Games will help China open up. But we cannot solve the problems that UN secretaries general have not been able to solve for generations," he said.
"The Olympic Games can foster change and be a catalyst for a solution but they are not a panacea."
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4 comments:
Ihave real mixed emotions on this. I don't think the athletes should have to go if they are agaist China politics but sounds like the Olympic committee is saying go or else. Strange.Mother
See, maybe it is good that we pulled out of the swimming competitionbefore all this happened.
We did pull out, didn't we??
Love, Earlene
I go back and forth on this. On the one hand I don't think China should be rewarded for their human rights record. On the other, I think smiling happy people from the free world in their blue jeans helped convince the soviets to tear down their wall.
Real revolution in China will only happen when the people decide to change their own government. Boycotting and shutting them off has worked wonders for North Korea and Cuba, so I'm not as convinced its a good ploy as I used to be.
This is a rough situation. Unfortunately I don't know that boycotting will do all that much other than create a little commotion.
So are you boycotting or what???
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