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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Sean Ingle in Beijing

The elite and the damned: Beijing 2022 begins with dose of realpolitik

On the eve of these Olympics, which have been scarred by more controversy and tone-deafness than any since Moscow in 1980, Thomas Bach was asked a simple question. What was his message to the Uyghur population of China, who believe they are being repressed?

Say what you want about the president of the International Olympic Committee. But 46 years after he won a fencing gold medal, he retains an uncanny ability to parry and evade.

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