A 29-year-old woman surnamed He has been detained on charges of maliciously fabricating information on social media and slandering athletes and coaches following the women’s singles final of table tennis at the Paris Olympics, Beijing police announced on Tuesday evening.
Chinese player Chen Meng successfully defended her Olympic crown in the table tennis women’s singles on Saturday, defeating world No.1 Sun Yingsha, another Chinese player, by a score of 4-2.
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Chen Meng (right) and Sun Yingsha hug after their final match.
Chinese spectators at the venue overwhelmingly supported 24-year-old Sun, while some even booed at Chen, 30. This biased display of support was surprising and sparked widespread controversy.
After the match, negative comments and criticisms of Chen emerged online, with some followers spreading rumors about her and other athletes on social media platforms.
In response, China’s X-like Sina Weibo has banned over 300 accounts on Sunday and removed thousands of offensive comments.
The case is under further investigation, police said.
