Beijing Olympics 2022: Chinese Judges Accused Of Bias, Disqualifying Other Countries

Olympic speed skaters have cried foul over what they claimed was biased officiating in the 2022 Winter Games in favor of host country China after local bets nabbed top finishes in an event this week following the disqualification of participants from other nations.

China's Ren Ziwei and Li Wenlong won gold and silver, respectively, in the men's 1,000-meter short-track speed skating event Monday despite Hungary's Liu Shaolin having crossed the finish line first, NBC News reported.

Liu was given a yellow card for committing multiple penalties in the event and ended up being disqualified, according to the outlet. The Hungarian speed skater also appeared to have crossed the blue line earlier.

The disqualification resulted in China claiming the top two podium finishes, while bronze went to Liu's brother and fellow Hungarian representative, Liu Shaoang.

If he had earned gold, Shaolin would have made history for Hungary, which has never won an individual gold medal at the Winter Olympics, according to NBC Sports.

During Monday's event, the U.S. was disqualified after an American skater crossed the blue line and entered the race early. A judge had ruled that the U.S. committed an infraction following a review of video footage, a report by South Korean outlet Yonhap News Agency said.

Meanwhile, the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) also got disqualified for having a skater get in between two Chinese skaters during an exchange.

South Korean short tracker Kwak Yoon-gy as well as skaters from the Netherlands expected China to be disqualified like the U.S. and ROC.

However, participants from the host country were allowed to move on, with gold medalist Ren not receiving a penalty even after he pushed Shaolin with two hands at the finish, 7News.com.au reported.

"[A]s the review dragged on, I figured China was going to be allowed to progress. And when the call was finally made, I found it difficult to accept it. If it had been any other country than China in that situation, I wondered if that team would still have been allowed to reach the final like that?" said Kwak, who did not participate in the event for his team.

"Looking at the way China won the gold medal, I felt bad that my younger teammates had to watch something like that. I thought to myself, 'Is this really what winning a gold medal is all about?'" the three-time Olympian added.

Former Australian speed skating champion Steven Bradbury also called China's win "unbelievable."

"Nothing could be more favorable for the Chinese team with the judges than what’s happened tonight here in Beijing," the 2002 Olympic Games gold medalist was quoted as saying.

However, Stephen Gough, head coach of the U.S. team, said he doesn't think China should have also been penalized, Reuters reported.

The judges for the short-track speed skating event previously faced accusations of bias after China won mixed relay gold over the weekend.

The International Skating Union did not immediately provide a response to a request for comment over the allegedly biased refereeing in Monday's race, according to the outlet.