The 30 Greatest Sports Conspiracy Theories of All-Time - Elliott Kalb [123]
Unfortunately for Liu and the Chinese people, victory on the track was not assured. The demands of Liu’s hectic appearance schedule (in promotion of both the games and the various products he endorses) threw a wrench in his training. Then, in late May, tightness in his hamstring forced Liu to pull out of the Reebok Grand Prix in New York. A week later, he was disqualified after twice false-starting in the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon. As the Beijing games neared, it was clear that Liu was not in top form. The best time he had posted in 2008 was 13.18 seconds, a full three-tenths of a second off his world record time, and only the thirteenth best time posted on the world stage that year.
The pressure on Liu only intensified when Cuba’s Dayron Robles, his chief rival, broke his world record (by .01 of a second) just a few months before the Beijing Games. But as expectations multiplied, Chinese officials insisted Liu was coping with it well. “He withstands the pressure like no other athlete can,” said Feng Shuyong, the Chinese national track coach. “His psychological powers are great.”
In what was assumed to be a concentrated effort to improve his conditioning and regain his top form for Beijing, Liu spent the final months leading into the Games training in virtual seclusion. This caused concerned Chinese fans to wonder about the severity of Liu’s hamstring injury, a curiosity that became magnified when, at the opening ceremonies, Liu was conspicuously absent. According to official reports from Chinese state media, Liu had missed the ceremonies to conserve his strength and energy. Liu did not join the Olympic Village until eight days later, and it wasn’t until August 17—the day before he was scheduled to appear in the qualifying heats—that Liu first appeared inside the Bird’s Nest (the nickname for Beijing’s Olympic stadium).
With wild rumors swirling around the Internet about Liu’s condition, Sun told reporters in Beijing one week before the qualifying heats that Liu was “very close to his best form.” Liu himself had been quoted in a report published in South Cities News on July 25 saying that he was not injured, but the rumors persisted, especially on the Internet.
On Monday, August 18, a near-capacity crowd gathered inside the Bird’s Nest to catch a glimpse of China’s national sporting hero. Liu arrived on the track wearing only one shoe, and NBC′s cameras caught him struggling in the warm-up area. After attempting a few hurdles before the start of the race, those same cameras caught Liu grimacing in pain. It was obvious that he was injured, perhaps seriously, but he still lined up with the rest of the field for the start of the race.
Once in the starting blocks, Liu slapped at his right Achilles tendon, trying to loosen it up. With a pained expression spread across his face, he rose with his competitors to the set position, then took off at the sound of the gun. Liu only made it a few steps before he pulled up in agony. A false start had been called, yet instead of heading back to the starting blocks, Liu removed the tags from his hips and walked gingerly off the track. Just like that, his Olympics was over. The crowd was shocked, left in stunned silence as they began to realize that their hero would not be able to defend his title. The rest of the field then completed the race without him, but not before an estimated 60% of the crowd left the stadium, according to a report in the Epoch Times. Sadly, four years after capturing gold, Liu never even made it to the first hurdle in Beijing.
Many of the fans remaining in the Bird’s Nest began