CHINA: GYMNASTICS / BADMINTON - A sports school in Beijing continues to produce the world's top gymnasts and badminton players

Beijing's Shichahai Sports Training Center hopes to produce more world gymnastic and badminton champions in the future through rigorous training and discipline. The Shichahai Sports School, located in downtown Beijing, is regarded as the cradle of China's future stars. Chinese gymnasts have been dominating the sport for years, winning medals at all major international competitions and offering the nation's best people in search of glory at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. To become a world class athlete, children start practicing gymnastics at the early age of five. The school was established in 1986 as a professional training facility and has produced a number of world class gymnasts since then. Gymnastic World Champion Zhang Jinjing in 1995 and 1996' World Champion, Kui Yuanyan are among some of the famous students who attended the school's rigorous training regime on their way to the top. Gymnastics coach, Wang Zhijian says it is too early to predict whether some of the young students at the school will eventually follow the steps of previous champions. "These are all young talents. But what achievements they can have eventually depends on where they are heading in the future. They will need a higher-level training. They are so little now, and you barely see kids at such a young age at the Olympics. We are just fostering some young talents for our country here", he said. China has dominated international badminton lately, and hopes to continue its lead in years to come. Hundreds of talented players are carefully selected and put through daily exercises, after which, coaches choose the most promising players for further training. In 1996, Dong Jiong Shichahai Sports School came in second in a men's single event in the Atlanta Olympic games--Lu Yi followed in his steps by winning the championship title at the 2002 World Youth Badminton Championship. Some of the current students hope to achieve similar success in the future. "I started training here when I was a little kid. I am very into badminton. It is very tough to be an athlete, but it is worthwhile to go through all the hardship. My dream is to win the top medal for badminton in my career life", 21-year-old, Hong Jingyu said. This year China has won both the Thomas Cup and the Uber Cup again-- the two most prestigious team events in badminton. China beat the Netherlands 3-0 in the Uber Cup Final and won the Thomas Cup by beating Denmark 3-0 in the final. Last year, the school had to fight allegations by a British rowing legend that its rigorous training regimens were on the verge of physical abuse of child athletes. The allegations made by Matthew Pinsent, a four-time gold medalist aired in the British media revived controversy over the Shichahai sports school. In his report, Pinsent said children were 'in pain' while performing exercises and said that a vice principal acknowledged that corporal punishment occasionally occurred. The allegations and the denial are but the latest in recurring controversies over Chinese training practices. China has a huge network of sports schools known for recruiting promising young athletes in the hopes of turning them into world champions. The Shichahai school is one of China's more famous sports academies and one of its most visited. Criticisms of its harsh practices have been leveled by visiting Western media and sports figures periodically for more than a decade. ENDS.

ITN Source | August 11, 2006

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