A Transcultural Olympic History of China - Athlete, Audience, and Authority in China’s Olympic Experiences

State of the Art:
Concerning China’s presence at the Olympic Games, recent studies have adopted a Eurocentric perspective that portrays China as a latecomer in Western sports and an outsider to the Olympic Games. Within this narrative, the country was usually depicted as an exotic, heterodox, and totalitarian East Asian State. Chinese nationalism has therefore been understood as the major narrative and essential force behind China’s active engagement with international sports.

Theoretical Approach:
This study makes a critical review of Eurocentric perspectives while suggesting a transcultural approach that goes beyond simplistic narratives around China. Instead of limiting the study`s focus to a framework naturalizing established geopolitical boundaries, the transcultural approach does not take historical units and boundaries as given but rather considers the boundaries and differences as a subject of investigation.

Research Question and Structure:
The central question that this study asks, then, is: How have differences been made in the narratives of nation-building in China`s Olympic experiences? Accordingly, the study consists of three case studies on the following Chinese athletes:
1. Former female table tennis player He Zhili (also known by her married name Chire Koyama)
2. Retired 110m male hurdler Liu Xiang
3. Female swimmer Ye Shiwen and male swimmer Sun Yang.

Method, Sources, and Conclusion:
With the three case studies, this study discusses the interplay amongst athletes, audience, and authority on various issues, such as China’s sports policymaking, online nationalism, and doping in elite sports. Through qualitative analyses of materials including interviews, biography, social media posts, and media coverage, the study argues that public understandings of China are undergoing complex multi-directional transformations, which are understudied and therefore, need to be further investigated. More importantly, those ongoing transformations are not necessarily coinciding with historical occurrences or contained within either the territorial and political domains or cultural and civilizational spheres of China.