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China
athletes 'faked their age'
The youths were X-rayed to try to determine their real age
BBC: 16 March 2009
Bone tests on teenage athletes in south China have shown that thousands
had faked their age, often in order to keep competing in junior events.
Tests on nearly 13,000 athletes found that more than 3,000 were older than their registered age, according to the
Sports Bureau of Guangdong Province.
At least one athlete was seven years older than their stated age, but most
were said to differ by a year or two.
The news comes as Guangdong prepares to host the 2010 Asian Games.
The investigation is the latest in a number of initiatives by the Chinese authorities to crack down on the practice
of age-faking, which many experts believe is rampant.
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