JINAN, East China - Li Hua, head of the National Aquatics Sport Administration Center of China, said here on Wednesday that the match-fixing allegations of the diving competitions during the 11th National Games are "irresponsible and groundless."
Li, also the executive director of the Diving Competitions Committee of the National Games, denies all the allegations in an official statement sent to the media.
"The rumors said all the gold medals had been fixed before the competitions started. I think these rumors are irresponsible and groundless," said Li.
"All the rules and process on managing the judges during the competitions of the National Games are very strictly followed. Nobody can fix the results of the competitions during such a fiercely competitive National Games," he said.
Ma Ming, one of the diving judges at the Games, disclosed that matches in the diving competitions were fixed by Zhou Jihong, head of the Chinese diving team and Li's deputy. "To my surprise, all of the gold medals are decided internally ahead of time," Ma was quoted as saying by Chinese media.
The judge said she resigned in the middle of competition because she could not turn a blind eye to such "under-the-table deals".
According to China Economic.net, on October 10, Ma told a reporter who she believed would win the next four gold medals in the National Games. All of her picks turned out to be correct two days later -- He Chong in the men's 3m springboard and Wang Hao and Hong Lai in the women's 10m synchro, Wu Minxia and Chen Qinqin in the women's 3m synchro, Zhou Luxin in the men's 10 meters platform.
Ma said that Zhou, also China's first diving Olympic champion, has the final say in the meet results.
Zhou denied all the allegations earlier on Wednesday.
Match-fixing is not something new in China. The 10th National Games four years ago in south China's Jiangsu province were plagued with match-fixing rumors in judo, rhythmic gymnastics and taekwondo.
The Games is to open officially here on October 16 with some events, including speed skating, fencing, table tennis, gymnastics and diving were held beforehand to give way to some international events.