Once a liar, always a liar

I, like many other people, am a huge fan of the Olympics. Both summer and winter, it doesn't matter. My three favorite events to watch are swimming, figure skating and gymnastics.

This week there was a story that appeared on Yahoo about the Chinese gymnasts and their age while competing in the Sydney Olympic games. The Sydney games were in 2000, the investigations were started after accusations made during the 2008 Beijing Games. According to what I've read, a gymnast is required to be 16 when they compete in the games, however the Chinese were only 14.

I know cheating takes place I'm not stupid. It just breaks my heart that young children are encouraged to lie about their age by their coaches and possibly their government. What type of an example does this set for other children?

China is a country with a rich history that talks about bringing honor and respect to its nation. How does being called a cheater by the entire world bring honor to their country?

I do have another question for whoever is in charge of the investigations. If the Chinese team lied about the age of their competitors in 2000, what makes them think that they didn't lie about it in 2004 and 2008?

I've learned from dealing with people of all race and nationality, that if they lie once and get away with it, then they will probably do it again.