Is there an age limit to compete at the Olympics?

Question

If so, why do the chinese gymnasts look so underage?

Answer 1

It varys from sport to sport, thes a 15yr swimmer from uk my personnal opinion they are far too young and what happens when they reach 20 they are burnt out and unable to compete again, far too much presure on kids to be the best at all costs

Answer 2

You must turn 16 in the year that the Olympics is held for gymnasts. I don't know about the other sports.

Answer 3

it varies. diving doesnt have an age limit as there was a 14 year old boy competing. but i know that gymnastics is 16 as other sports are probably the same.

Answer 4

Yes,for all other countries except China and for them,it can be anything that they want to put on a birth certificate.No.w quit whining and let them concentrate on more cheating.

Answer 5

They are Underage, and yeh there is a age limit in the olympics but i just cant remember what it is, but the Chinese gymnasts are underage, ( for whatever reason i do not know )  

Answer 6

Only in gymnastics, in the other events you have to be within your country's standards e.g for 100m you have to be running under 10.5 for example. Then you have to go through trials and then you have to be selected!

Answer 7

I heard on TV that the youngest athlete in these Olympics is 12 years old.

She's from Cameroon and she's a swimmer.

Answer 8

yes 16

Answer 9

My friend, it depends on the sport. In Gymnastic, the age limit is 16, but I think these kids are too young. Even, Bela Karolyi, the former gymnastic coach for the US, is convince that these kids are underage.

There is a kid from london that is 14 yrs old...

Answer 10

You have to be at least 16 to compete in gymnastics.  The Chinese gymnasts look underage because they are.  They're only like, 12.  You know that Russian guy who does commentaries and recaps for gymnastics (can't remember his name for the life of me, sorry)?  He said in an interview that the Chinese gymnasts are only around 12 years old and they lie in order to compete.

Edit - Just found this video today and it reminded me of this question.  A clip from a news network talking about how the Chinese gymnasts are underage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIcWaVGAZ...

Answer 11

The official rules dictate that the athlete must turn 16 years of age in the same year that the olympics are held, so an athlete could compete if they are 15 but their sixteenth birthday is in this year. The Chinease gymnasts do look very underaged, and there are many theories for this, such as the government is in on it and gives them fake passports, or that they overexercise, or that they follow strict diets that do not allow them to properly develop. I personally think it is a mixture of all of the above. It is a known fact, however, that the chinese government has the authority to, and often does, track the genes of athletic parents, then remove their child and place them in sport specific training with or without their consent based on the athletic genetic makeup of their parents, this happens ecspecially a lot in gymnastics.

P.S. all that high fiving the chinese athletes do between routines is fake, touching hands is not a common guesture in china, and these athletes have been told to do this in order to make the rest of the world, ecspecially america, accept china as one of their own

Answer 12

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asian people mature slowly than western people. Hence those USA femle gymnast looked quite mature unlike the chinese who looked quite young.

There is no real age limit really. People even under the age of 12 can get in if they are olympic standard

Answer 13

it varies between sports...for example in gymnastics there is a 16 year old age limit (even though the Chinese girls look 12 and 13), some divers are as young as 14, so as you can see it varies by sport. Also in the case of the Chinese girls looking underage, their government is supposedly in on it, because they have passports that say they are above 16; whether or not these are valid is another matter. Also if women do not eat and excessively exercise as is the case of some gymnast it can stop their menstrual cycle...no cycle=no estrogen=less growth which makes them look young even though they may not be

Answer 14

hm, b/ they probably will be 16 only in couple years? IMO, USA won the gold yesterday as China broke the rules. I cannot believe those little babies were 12, let alone 16.