Comment on "The real weight of Olympic gold" (China Daily, Aug 14)

Like it or not, every country, especially the United States, attaches great importance to winning medals, gold medals to be precise, at the Olympic Games, because it is a matter of national pride, symbol of national strength and a good way of commanding respect from others.

China has done an excellent job of cultivating athletes. Those who criticize China's way of selecting and training athletes have the ulterior motive of stirring up controversy and creating a negative image of China.

Yang Hui, on China Daily website

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(China Daily 08/20/2012 page9)