All that gold does not glitter

摘要

To a surge of jubilant national pride China is poised for the first time to win more gold medals at the Olympics than any other country. For China's leaders, the gold-medal haul is wonderful news after a grim few months that have seen crippling snow storms, upheaval in Tibet and a deadly earthquake. America, the sporting superpower, has been defeated. Russia, third-ranking at the Athens Olympics in 2004, has been left in the dust. But some Chinese are openly questioning China's route to Olympic triumph: unfettered investment by a gold-fixated government that controls the careers of athletes.rnBy mid-week China was on course to top the gold-medal table by a comfortable margin (see chart).