Tracking China: What Took Down Liu Xiang and Is It Worth It?

China, still in mourning over Liu Xiang’s inability to clear a single hurdle during the qualifying heats, has been looking for someone to blame. Meanwhile, the medal count continues to rise. Amid all China's wins and scandals, though, there has been a steady drumbeat of questions about the value of medals and Olympic bias.

Liu Xiang’s tumble has seemed to devastate China more than any other loss in the Games so far. Most media outlets are, predictably, either focusing on the mass sadness or Liu's overcoming of adversity; some are questioning whether everyone is just overreacting. As everyone grapples with the loss of the gold medal that Liu Xiang was favored to win, people are wondering who to blame. Was there too much pressure? Did numerology doom Liu’s ability to hurdle?

While you sort out those possibilities, here’s what netizens are saying on Weibo:

• "Don’t come back, too much pressure. Rest, be a good lingdao, train more athletes."
• "Please don’t come back, it hurts others and yourself as well. Keep your glory, if you do it again, the only thing left will be blame. We want to see a hurdle game, not performance, thanks for your cooperation."
• "No matter whether you return or not, you are a hero."
• "Can’t ignore that endorsement income, huh?"
• "It’s too fake. The Chinese media is disgusting!"
• "Liu Xiang is old – why does the public put so much pressure on him? It’s amazing that a bunch of stupid men can attack others verbally like this. And they are saying this to someone who was once called a hero. Tragic."
• "I wish he could live a good life, indulge in freedom, rest and recover, and never return to that weird cycle again. But it looks like he will have to return to prove himself to those who have been badmouthing him."
• "Why doesn't he just go die! Twice, you’ve deceived us twice!!"
• "Many would be happy to see you return, but not me. Why can’t you settle down and become a lingdao."
• "Get the surgery, get married, have kids."
• "I think Liu Xiang needs to retire. No other meaning. Wish him all the best!"
• [supposedly from the perspective of Liu Xiang] "Nike, Coca Cola, Nutrilite, Visa, China Post EMS, Lenovo, banks, Tsingtao beer … all these contracts have not expired. For their sake, I will return …"

Also making the rounds on Weibo is a text from Liu Xiang to his parents: “I’ve decided to undergo surgery ASAP. Injuries are normal for an athlete. Please don’t worry, I’ll be back. The hurdle is still there – I will still leap over it.”

China’s latest medal accomplishments have included comeback gold and silver for female gymnasts on the balance beam, a first-time gold in race walking, as well as medals in taekwondo and synchronized swimming.

But where China has really dominated is in ping pong. They have just walked away with the golds (plus two silvers) from all four table tennis events. Another interesting fact on the country’s domination in the sport, pointed out by Beijing Cream, is that 11 of the world’s top 16 ping pongers are Chinese. So how do China's netizens feel about the fact that their nation essentially owns ping pong?

• "A game without suspense. How interesting is that?"
• "A glorious generation."
• "Hopefully our ping pong team stays strong, and stays on top of the world!"
• "When can our bigger-ball games become like our small-ball game?"
• "When it’s only us winning the gold, it's hard to be humble."
• "I don’t like to watch ping pong or badminton. It’s just the same few people playing back and forth."
• "Your best rival is your best teammate."

Here's some more Olympics food for thought: Is there a Western bias against China in the Games or is it just a matter of China having become the opposite of the underdog? Is China too gold-medal obsessed and how unhealthy is that pressure for the athletes? Finally, is all this winning worth it, especially when the government has allegedly invested RMB 10 million on gold-medal swimmer Sun Yang alone?

Images: Sina.com, Beijingcream.com