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Chinese swimmer's success draws attention to training issues

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    System in China too brutal for children?

  • Duration 6:40
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-- new charges and countercharges today about the stunning performances by a Chinese swimmer at the London Olympics.

This sixteen year old female swimmer from China blowing away the field in a 400 meter individual relay.

Shattering the world record and locking a faster time in the last fifteen years of that race then the male gold medal winner Ryan -- The controversies also raising new questions about how these Chinese athletes train.

We're told that it is a life of intense preparation beginning an early childhood.

Complete with stories like those we heard from Communist nations during the Cold War.

Shauna sale is a senior writer for the yes for ESPN magazine and.

Author of steroid nation.

And got to keep that low is a psychiatrist and a member of -- Fox News medically team.

Thank you both so much for being here senator it's it's not just about you she -- who is at the center of this controversy it's about.

Quite a few Chinese athletes and the more we looked into this.

The more disturbed we got about the reports that are accepted I mean that are admitted to by the Chinese how.

Six and seven year -- who -- in school who show any sort of athletic prowess at school.

Get reported to the government get yanked out of school get put any special training camps and then all hope of staying with their family having a family relationship is -- here's the quote from one athlete saying.

That the father who had his child to get away I don't even dare to think about things like enjoying family happiness.

Anymore.

Sean can you -- us -- on how this happened.

Well you know.

-- all around the world right and see kids plucked out of their schools when they -- talent to mean you know you can look in Florida and you -- six years old yes if you don't but here's the problem in the and the problem is that China's much of the Soviet Union has an -- to that the question is.

When the kids are plucked out of schools are they given the best you coaching they can in the in the world or -- health and -- about drugs in the world and that's where I think you draw the line and I'm not so troubled by state sponsors school at -- -- -- -- -- -- -- American -- -- wish -- -- that -- -- attention.

What I'm troubled -- the history of pharmacology.

And that's -- -- things like I.

There are there there are questions about whether this athlete with doping are not helping -- denied that she was but.

The Daily Mail had a fascinating interview with with added a swimmer nick Petra Schneider.

Who is from east Germany and she was a big swimmer back in the day here she is winning the gold.

And she came out years later and said I was.

Basically a lab rat and they stuck me full of drugs and they kept me in the pool all day long and I didn't see my family and she did she said it ruined her life.

And she came out later actually asked for her records to be expunged because of what had been done to her she sees similarities with you should win doctor -- -- do you have a problem with what.

Those athletes.

Yeah I have the opposite view this is not about a Floridians.

-- -- talent and therefore does three hours of after school swimming because he wants to his parents figure a little too eager is about the collective.

This is about a government that doesn't value individual freedom saying your life will be spent in service to the state.

Your family and it's affections for you no matter not to this collective because only the government matters this isn't Florida.

This is a wholly different culture that abort children from mothers -- don't want -- aboard we have very little in common with these people we ought to just say.

That this is not what we consider human rights that this isn't what we consider athletic competition if you wanna manufacture kids call what is -- child abuse.

It's abduction it's kidnapping I don't like to mince words in my office as a psychiatrist or here with give.

They have a long history -- of taking athletes from their families when they're young.

And that there was a report.

Well first of all they have a long history of cheating as well -- Back in 2000 they try to get this fourteen year old mother -- -- Olympic team successfully they did Jim this -- they wound up losing their bronze medal when it came out that she was not of age.

But there's no respect for the fact that there's a reason there's a sixteen year old age limit.

These are children.

Who.

Look up to don't get me wrong there I mean I'm not -- back at the for the country.

That's accused of widespread computer hacking to steal industrial secrets the United States -- -- an element in the kids -- -- about it and where your daughter would you like it.

She's plucked -- you know plucked out of school you don't see year.

Decisions made by the government that shall be a swimmer and that's the end of your decision making capacity to grow our daughter of course not but I think what would be to be on the agenda this for this discussion.

-- Olympic drug testing and whether the whether the Olympic drug testing cops are up to this challenge are they not know when it hit an.

I think there's a little while it's messing up did you yank about a school you put him in the state run camp.

And end it there in the pool all day long term deals are controlled they don't have access to their family but -- -- to pump -- full of drugs you take it to a new Obama.

You do take -- the level listen that's easy right to me because you can test them.

Perhaps I'm in every one might agree look the drugs that's not good especially in kids I'd say the same thing though if I could it if it could be prove it.

That these kids were removed from their families that.

In human separation occurred.

-- -- compete let me take credit medals away and Alex you just as bad.

-- -- -- did you eulogy it's worse than steroids worse.

A hundred times worse I want to tell the viewers that take a look at the womb -- -- she's she won us a third Olympic gold medal.

She's a Chinese -- we've got her picture standby.

It just came out that her both of her grandparents died this past year and her mother had breast cancer and -- they're admitting publicly that they deprived her of this in for patient.

So she lost both grandparents affection -- -- They decided not to tell her until after she went for the gold.

Because the whole system over there is rigged to protect the chances for gold in this her was her father who said I don't think about things like enjoyed him in happiness.

And say quote we -- a long time ago that she doesn't.

Belong.

Entirely to us.

Absolutely because this is a culture that tells mothers who want their kids know -- gonna have aborted.

This is -- could a culture that says even though you may have intellectual property we don't care were stealing it.

There's a culture that says you may want your kids to grow up playing in the streets enjoying a lot they're gonna go to work in a factory we are a whole lot different from this culture.

You know I was in Beijing.

And and I didn't hear a lot of these this talk that and so I mean the people who had the opportunity go on the record four years ago weren't there when I did see -- -- though.

Was a lot of confusion about drug testing that thing may have been purposeful -- that's what I think we see here.

Is the question -- are the Olympics up to testing to take care to catch the cheaters they're -- a coming out of these systems.

Each winning here and the bigger slice out questions remain a cultural problem for now Donna thank you both so much.

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