BEIJING: Chinese authorities said they were investigating an athlete’s claim that she was bullied by her boss after refusing to give him prize money from her wins at the 2023 Asian Games.
Dragon boat paddler Wang Li, 23, who won three gold medals at the pandemic-delayed competition in China’s Hangzhou, accused the director of her training facility of “retaliation” in a video posted online.
Following her return to Yunnan province’s Songmao Sports Training Base, director Fan Jiwen had demanded she give him 150,000 yuan (around US$21,000) from her prize money, Wang said.
But once she refused, Wang said Fan had prohibited her from training, submitted her retirement papers without her consent and belittled her at public meetings.
The Yunnan Provincial Sports Bureau said on Monday (Dec 15) it had noted Wang’s allegations and established a team to conduct a “comprehensive investigation”.
“Based on the investigation results, the Provincial Sports Bureau will handle the matter in accordance with regulations, discipline, and the law,” it said in a statement on its WeChat account.
In the video posted on popular Chinese social media app Xiaohongshu, Wang said that “director Fan often told us that we should be grateful, that our jobs were given by him, our salaries were paid by him, and our retirement arrangements were decided by him”.
“He said, ‘I can give you everything and can also take everything away’.”
The athlete said Fan had also lied to his superiors that she was unable to train due to injuries, “completely ruining” her chances of competing.
Wang added that the mistreatment and long-term “suppression” by Fan led to her developing severe depression.
“I wondered if my life wouldn’t have been so difficult if I hadn’t worked so hard to win medals,” she said.
Source: CNA
