The Olympics Do Not Welcome Everyone

Sure, if you want to go to the Olympics, you’ve got to be the best at your sport. But for some, even that isn’t enough.

This year’s Beijing Olympics are possibly the most politicized Olympics to go down on the planet in decades. It’s always ugly when politics enter into something supposed to be as pure an ideal as the excellence of sport, but the polluted skies over Beijing aren’t the only source of dirt and grime these days.

Everyone knows about the furious and polarizing debates and protests over Tibet. It’s hardly news anymore that there are monks on the march, and Chinese police cracking down on them. What I find even more disturbing, however, is the crushing influence of the Chinese government over people’s free speech. When so-called public opinion polls emerge saying that over 90% of all Chinese people are wholeheartedly in favor of every aspect of the Chinese government, as I’ve been reading about in the New York Times, you know something’s wrong.

No country likes their government that much, unless they’re too frightened to say differently. And now, this strong tendency to crack down on opposing opinions has gone one step further: it entered the olympics.

Princeton student Joey Cheek, class of 2011, a world champion speed skater and former Olympian (who was only going to the Olympics to support his team) has had his visa revoked by the Chinese government. The reason? Cheek is an outspoken activist for the genocide in Darfur, and has been critical of China’s many investments in the Sudan. Cheek had no intention of bringing his politics to the arena, but the Chinese government won’t tolerate any opposition, including the mere possibility. Meanwhile, the official dudes of the Olympic committee are refusing to defend the student, basically saying it’s out of their jurisdiction.

So much for the spirit of the Olympics.

I always used to think that cities were granted the privilage of hosting the Olympics for good behavior — having a well-developed nation with well-cared for citizens and a clear position supporting human rights and all that good stuff. Hence, the olympics that I’ve seen in my lifetime have all taken place in relatively developed nations — the U.S., Italy, Greece, Australia, and the upcoming Great Britain.

China, however, still has many troubling issues to address in terms of its position on human rights. Why has it been given the gift of the Olympics if it’s still bullying anyone who speaks critically of it? Here’s hoping the coming Olympics will be a showcase of athletic prowess and not governmental might.