Beijing Winter Olympics | China media says U.S. pays athletes to 'disrupt' Beijing Games
The Hindu
The plan is to "incite athletes from various countries to express their discontent toward China.”
Chinese state media said the United States plans to "maliciously disrupt and spoil" the Beijing Winter Olympics by enticing athletes to make half-hearted efforts in competition and to criticise Beijing.
A week before the Games begin amid tensions between the two superpowers, China Daily, an English-language newspaper run by the ruling Chinese Communist Party's Publicity Department, on Friday evening cited unnamed sources as saying U.S. "anti-China forces" sought to disrupt the Games and politicise sports.
A U.S. embassy spokesman told Reuters by email on Saturday, "We were not and are not coordinating a global campaign regarding participation at the Olympics."