China dismisses foreign media reports about detentions as simply made up, as anti china rumors. There are athletes already coming out and voicing support for weagers or other groups that have been systematically targeted in China. The international olymp committee does have rules that say athletes are not allowed to make political statements that interfere with comp tians ability to compete. But i imagine there could be some tense moments if athletes do decide to step up and say something within china. Thate's a huge risk for china.
The Games don’t begin until February 4, but the drama around the pandemic, free speech, and diplomatic boycotts has been building for months. NPR’s Emily Feng explains from Beijing.
This episode was produced by Hady Mawajdeh, edited by Matt Collette, engineered by Efim Shapiro, fact-checked by Laura Bullard and hosted by Sean Rameswaram.
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