Backlash downplayed over Horton-Sun swim storm

Beijing has said there will be no diplomatic fallout from Mack Horton’s protest against Chinese swimmer Sun Yang.

China's Sun Yang celebrates winning the gold medal in the final of the men's 400m freestyle on Sunday. Picture: AFP

Chinese officials claim there will not be any diplomatic fallout from swimmer Mack Horton’s protest against his opponent Sun Yang, despite state-owned media declaring the Australian showed a “lack of respect” to international sport.

A spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Geng Shuang, said last night the issue would be resolved by sporting bodies, denying it would affect ­relations between governments in Canberra and Beijing.

“We hope people with wisdom in Australia could work together with China in joint efforts to further promote the development of the relationship,” Mr Shuang said.

Horton’s refusal to stand on the podium next to the Chinese swimming star came days after Foreign Minister Marise Payne slammed China over its treatment of writer Yang Hengjun, who has been detained in China since January.

Senator Payne declined to comment yesterday.

The China Daily, owned by the Communist Party of China, yesterday criticised Horton for refusing to stand on the podium with Sun.

“Horton’s behaviour was not (an) insult to Chinese athletes, but (an) insult to himself,” the China Daily said.

The newspaper said Horton’s behaviour showed a “lack of ­respect to (the) result of competition” which was “not only a denial to his career, but violated the spirit of sports. His behaviour will make his silver medal less glorious.”

Chinese-government owned news agency Xinhua also reported “Horton openly refused to ­accept the silver.”

It reported that Sun was not ­affected by the protest and had dismissed it as “small tricks”.

Other sections of the Chinese media reported comments by Sun, who said: “You don’t have to respect me, but you have to ­respect China.”

Shanghai-based foreign policy expert Chen Hong said Horton’s actions were impolite and against the spirit of sportsmanship.

“Sport is supposed to have the mission of promoting mutual understanding and friendship,” said Professor Hong, director of the Australian Studies Centre at the East China Normal University in Shanghai.

Australia’s relations with China have been under strain since Malcolm Turnbull banned Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei from supplying equipment for Australia’s next generation 5G network.

That decision is believed to be behind long delays in processing shipments of Australian coal in China, which have been in place since February this year.

China recently rebuked Australia and a group of 21 other ­nations who sent an open letter to UN human rights officials criticising China’s treatment of Muslim Uighurs in the western region of Xinjiang, where more than a ­million Uighurs are believed to be ­detained in re-education camps.

Despite attempts to reset the relationship with China, the Morrison government stepped up its expressions of concern about Yang last week after news broke he had been moved into a detention centre in Beijing, despite not yet being charged with any ­offence.

Chinese officials say Yang is “suspected of criminal ­activities endangering national security”.

In a comment to The Australian yesterday, Professor Chen called on Australia to not make any more “imprudent and pointless attacks” on China.

He said these attacks would only “bring about damage” to ­bilateral relations, which he felt had been “moving forward on a stable trajectory” in recent months.

“China and Australia need to have mutual respect and trust instead of adopting a condescending, imposing attitude,” he said.

“The US has been venting anti-China rhetoric on a spectrum of issues to contain China’s rise. Australia does not have to be joined at the hip with Washington all the time.”