There's more to sporting success than just medals

The pursuit of excellence is first and foremost in elite sports training. The goal is as much about winning recognition as a championship crown. Such a mentality is particularly strong in the mainland's state-run sports regime, where funding and rewards are tied to performance. The obsession with medals can be so intense that it has become a catalyst for match-fixing and corruption.

It is good that the problem has been recognised by the nation's top sports body. In a damning report paving the way for long overdue reform, the State Administration of Sport hit out at the mania for medals. It said sports officials and athletes sometimes violated ethics and law in order to win. Such a win-at-all-costs culture had not only distorted sportsmanship, but also became a breeding ground for scandals, it added.

Whether the overhaul can instil a more healthy sporting culture remains to be seen. But the end to medal counts for provincial teams at the National Games should be a good start. The decision not to link rewards with medal victories at major games will also reduce the incentive to bend rules.

That the report is issued in response to an inquiry by the Communist Party's anti-graft body says a lot about President Xi Jinping's determination to fight corruption in all sectors. Earlier, Shanghai became the first major provincial government to ditch economic growth targets from its annual work report in a landmark change that will relieve the authority of the pressure to pursue growth at all costs. The same could be applied to the sport sector, where development is distorted by a worship of gold medals.

There was a time when the Soviet-bloc countries sought to awe the Western world with record-breaking achievements in sport. Today, China no longer needs medal hauls to prove its prowess on the international stage. While striving to outperform rivals is in an athlete's nature, there is more to sport than just clinching a gold medal. It is in the nation's interest to nurture a more healthy sports culture.