Taekwondo fighter Zheng Shuyin cries as China demands apology for ‘very dirty’ disqualification
- Chinese team want referee banned for life after penalising Olympic champion Zheng Shuyin in world championships final against Britain’s Bianca Walkden
- ‘I wish the referee could have been fair,’ says Zheng, who collapses in tears on the podium
Chinese taekwondo officials and media have demanded an apology and a lifetime ban for the referee who disqualified their Olympic champion Zheng Shuyin and denied her gold at the world championships.
Zheng was penalised by Moroccan referee Tarik Benradi for racking up 10 fouls in the +73kg heavyweight final against Britain’s Bianca Walkden in Manchester last Friday.
A series of unquestionable penalties were given when Walkden repeatedly pushed the Chinese fighter off the mat, a tactic perhaps considered unsportsmanlike but which is within the rules.
Zheng, who won gold in the +67kg category at the 2016 Rio Olympics, had been 20-10 up before she was forced into the penalties and the referee disqualified her.
China called the decision “bizarre” and a “scandal” and Zheng was in tears on the mats as Walkden celebrated – to a chorus of boos inside the venue.