中国奥委会：坚决抵制“饭圈”乱象

The 2023 National Diving Championships last week were drawn into controversy after a fan accused the referees of being biased against Olympic champion Quan Hongchan in the final of the 10-meter platform diving event. 

On Wednesday, Chen Yuxi, China’s three-time world champion, clinched the gold medal with 436.80 points, edging out Quan Hongchan, who scored 427.60 points and settled for silver. 

During the post-match interview, a fan’s voice was heard from the stands, alleging that “the referees were unfair and deliberately suppressed Quan’s score.”

The incident later triggered wider discussion on the impact of fandom culture in the sports field. 

11月27日，中国奥林匹克委员会转发中国体育报的文章《坚决抵制“饭圈”乱象 聚力聚焦事业大局》，对体育领域的“饭圈”乱象进行批驳。

On Monday, the General Administration of Sports of China and the Chinese Olympic Committee reposted an article from China Sports Daily, noting that such behavior should be “firmly rejected” to create a fair and equitable environment for the sports industry. This is necessary, so that “the athletes can entirely focus on their events and be a true role model for their fans.”

The Chinese government has been seeking ways to deal with unhealthy fandom culture since 2021, and measures have been taken to crack down on frenzied idol worship among underage fans. 

However, as the fan economy continues to heat up, the trend of fan adoration is rapidly spreading to athletes.

There have been several incidents of frenzied fans intruding into athletes’ personal lives, which have raised concerns on Chinese social media. 

For example, in mid-October this year, a trending video showed Chinese table tennis star Wang Chuqin being closely followed by someone filming him at the airport. Wang took to social media to voice his concerns about the excessive behavior of fans, calling for them to resist paparazzi-like behavior and respect the privacy of athletes.

Another similar situation happened to Yang Shuyu, a Chinese basketball star who also expressed her sense of dismay and anger over the invasion of her personal life in mid-October. She posted on Weibo that she did not want her personal information and itinerary to be obtained through illegal means.