I’ve been following the Olympic events daily since the opening ceremony, watching the swimming and volleyball and gymnastics events, and enjoying it more than I expected.  But reported instances of cheating have marred the experience.  Which athletes were cheating?  Well, non that I know of.  But the China and the Olympic Committee have been caught several times so far cheating the viewers.  If the organizers can’t be honest, how can they expect a higher standard from the athletes?

First was the story of the fake fireworks display during the opening ceremony.  The Beijing Olympic Committee concocted this visual display of 29 fireworks “footsteps” leading to the Olympic stadium, signifying the 29 Olympiads leading to Beijing.  But they determined that it would be too dangerous for a flying helicopter to fly through the display to film it, and smoggy conditions would make the whole thing less dramatic.  So instead of scrapping the idea, they spent a whole year faking it, complete with computer-generated fireworks, fake smog (less of course), and a slightly shaky “helicopter cam.”

Next, China was dismayed at the lack of attendance at some events, which they blamed on humidity, weather and rain.  It wouldn’t do for a country of over a billion people to not fill up events, right?  No problem… China prepared for that.  They held several days of “cheerleading camp” so they could bring in fake neutral fans to fill the seats.

Then this morning, we learnthat the child singer during the opening ceremonies didn’t actually sing.  No, I don’t mean she pre-recorded and then lip-synced.  I mean another girl named Yan Peiyi pre-recorded the song, and the girl in the red dress in front of the cameras, Lin Miaoke, lip-synced the words.  Why?  Because the singer with the beautiful voice was not deemed physically beautiful enough to be in front of the cameras.  “We wanted to project the right image, we were thinking about what was best for the nation.  The child on the screen should be flawless in image, in her internal feelings, and in her expression,” said Chen Qigang, the general music designer of the ceremony.  That poor kid!  Who doesn’t think she will have issues as she grows up, after being told in front of the whole nation that her appearance is more important than her ability.

I don’t tend to get much wrapped up in politics between nations and so forth.  I have enough to do managing my own life and keeping my family safe and happy than to worry about what’s going on in Tibet, or anywhere else.  But I think that former Chinese dissident Xiao Qiang is probably right in saying “It is all about projecting the right image of China with no respect for honesty or for the audience. I do not think the Chinese state realises how unethical this is, they don’t understand what kind of values they are reflecting.”

In a world where a week doesn’t go by where you don’t hear about steroids and human growth hormones and atheletes cheating their way to the top, it’s surprising to me to see that it isn’t the atheletes being caught cheating at these Olympics, but rather people running the games.