Olympics: Ioc Admits to Age Concern After Gymnastics Allegations

The International Olympic Committee's chief medical officer has today admitted a problem of age manipulation in gymnastics, amid allegations that at least one of China's gold medalists from the team event is underage.

Arne Ljunqvist, who heads the IOC's medical commission, said he has contacted the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique about the issue of enforcing the lower age limit in the sport. The minimum age for gymnasts in Olympic competition is 16 years old but a report was found on the government-run Xinhua website saying He Kexin turned 13 on November 3 last year. The report is reportedly no longer accessible on the organization's website.

"We have spoken to the medical officer of the gymnastics federation - and I am not saying that age is being manipulated here - we are talking about the general problem this federation faces," said Ljunqvist.

But the 77-year-old Swede explained the difficulties the IOC faces in establishing incontrovertible proof of infringements of the age rules. A completely reliable test has yet to be developed and cheats can take masking agents to complicate readings further. "Scientifically it is very difficult to prove," he said.

"There are ways to prove it through testing but not in a scientifically and legally accurate way. There can be a plus or minus by one or two years. And the results can be manipulated by taking certain substances."

Ljunqvist is a vice-president of the International Association of Athletics Federations, in which there have been instances of overage competitors illegally taking part in junior competitions. "Some cases have been discovered in other sports," he said. "This question is being tackled by several federations, not just gymnastics. If there is an age limit in an event there is a risk."