China's class of 2000 are still under scrutiny

China's Olympic gold medal gymnasts at the Beijing Games were old enough to compete, but the team that won bronze in Sydney eight years ago still face questions, the international gymnastics federation said yesterday.

The FIG closed the Beijing case after a five-and-a-half week investigation. "Originals of official documents received from the Chinese Gymnastics Association, specifically passports, identity cards and family booklets or household registers, confirm the ages of the athletes," the FIG said in a statement.

But two members of the 2000 squad – Dong Fangxiao and Yang Yun – remain under scrutiny. "The FIG does not consider the explanations and evidence provided to date in regards to these athletes as satisfactory," continued the statement. Dong got a Beijing Olympics credential with documents that suggest she was only 14 in 2000, according to Andre Gueisbuhler, secretary general of the FIG. Her blog also indicates she was under age in Sydney.

Yang, who also won a bronze medal on the uneven bars in 2000, said in a June 2007 interview that aired on state broadcaster China Central Television that she was 14 in Sydney. Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year to compete.

"I would hope that the whole world in sport realises that the FIG is serious about these rules and the ethics and moral questions," Gueisbuhler said. Calls to Yang and Dong's mobile phones rang unanswered yesterday.

"We are satisfied with the information provided by FIG, and we now consider the [2008] matter closed," said Emmanuelle Moreau, spokeswoman for the International Olympic Committee. "Clearly they feel that there is more to be looked at for Sydney."