Swedish Gold Medalist says China's hosting of Olympics 'extremely irresponsible' amid human rights abuses
//Swedish speed skater Nils van der Poel, who won two gold medals at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, on Sunday, February 13, 2022, condemned the International Olympic Committee (#IOC) as being "extremely irresponsible" in handing over the games to a country that "violates human rights as blatantly" as China does.
25-year-old Nils van der Poel took gold in the men's 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter speed skating competitions at the 2022 Winter Olympics, setting the world record in the latter.
...He compared the games to the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.
He said that the Olympics is a "fantastic sporting event where you unite the world and nations meet," but he added that "so did Hitler before invading Poland, and so did Russia before invading Ukraine," referring to the German invasion of Poland in 1939 and the invasion of Ukrainian territory in Crimea by Russia in 2014.
As for Beijing's hosting of the Winter Games, Van de Poel said, "I think it is extremely irresponsible to give it to a country that violates human rights as blatantly as the Chinese regime is doing."//
Read full article:
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4444098
Source: Taiwan News #Feb15
#NilsVanDerPoel #Sweden #WinterOlympics #Beijing #China
//Swedish speed skater Nils van der Poel, who won two gold medals at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, on Sunday, February 13, 2022, condemned the International Olympic Committee (#IOC) as being "extremely irresponsible" in handing over the games to a country that "violates human rights as blatantly" as China does.
25-year-old Nils van der Poel took gold in the men's 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter speed skating competitions at the 2022 Winter Olympics, setting the world record in the latter.
...He compared the games to the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.
He said that the Olympics is a "fantastic sporting event where you unite the world and nations meet," but he added that "so did Hitler before invading Poland, and so did Russia before invading Ukraine," referring to the German invasion of Poland in 1939 and the invasion of Ukrainian territory in Crimea by Russia in 2014.
As for Beijing's hosting of the Winter Games, Van de Poel said, "I think it is extremely irresponsible to give it to a country that violates human rights as blatantly as the Chinese regime is doing."//
Read full article:
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4444098
Source: Taiwan News #Feb15
#NilsVanDerPoel #Sweden #WinterOlympics #Beijing #China
Taiwan News
Swedish skater says China's hosting of Olympics 'extremely irresponsible' amid human rights abuses
Van der Poel condemns IOC for allowing China to host Olympics amid blatant human rights violations | 2022-02-15 18:43:00
#Swedish winter Olympic champion gives #GoldMedal away to protest China’s human rights abuses
//Swedish athlete Nils van der Poel has given his gold medal from the #BeijingWinterOlympics to to the daughter of jailed bookseller #GuiMinhai, in protest against China’s “oppression” of free speech and human rights.
Gui, a Swedish citizen, was one of five Hong Kong-based booksellers affiliated with #CausewayBayBooks, which sold political gossip titles.
“I am not the voice of all Olympians, but me and my friends dedicated our lives to strive for excellence within sports, and the Chinese government chose to use our dreams as a political weapon to legitimise their regime. To me that was personal, and I felt exploited,” van der Poel told #AmnestyInternational.//
Read the full article:
https://hongkongfp.com/2022/02/28/swedish-winter-olympic-champion-gives-gold-medal-away-to-protest-chinas-human-rights-abuses/
Source: Hong Kong Free Press #Feb28
#NilsVanDerPoel #Sport
//Swedish athlete Nils van der Poel has given his gold medal from the #BeijingWinterOlympics to to the daughter of jailed bookseller #GuiMinhai, in protest against China’s “oppression” of free speech and human rights.
Gui, a Swedish citizen, was one of five Hong Kong-based booksellers affiliated with #CausewayBayBooks, which sold political gossip titles.
“I am not the voice of all Olympians, but me and my friends dedicated our lives to strive for excellence within sports, and the Chinese government chose to use our dreams as a political weapon to legitimise their regime. To me that was personal, and I felt exploited,” van der Poel told #AmnestyInternational.//
Read the full article:
https://hongkongfp.com/2022/02/28/swedish-winter-olympic-champion-gives-gold-medal-away-to-protest-chinas-human-rights-abuses/
Source: Hong Kong Free Press #Feb28
#NilsVanDerPoel #Sport