Chinese Olympic "Child" gymnasts

My daughter was a high level competitive gymnast from the age of 7 to 15. She quit as she had a growth spurt and became too tall to compete at the elite level. She also developed a "fear factor" (I called it common sense!) that kept her from doing the very complicated tricks she would have thought nothing of trying at a younger age.That is why, by the time most female gymnasts who reach college or sometimes even high school age, are "over the hill"!

The rules of the Olympics state all athletes must be at least 16 to compete. Though younger gymnasts might have the advantage in that they are usually more flexible and lack the "fear" factor of ollder girls, there is also the great danger of damaging their growth plates because the bones are not yet fully fused at a younger age. If that plate is damaged, it will affect their growth. The tricks these kids are forced to do at such a tender age are putting them in great danger of injuries they will sustain for life. This is child abuse in my opinion, but tame in comparison to the gross human violations that seem to be the norm in China.