Olympic officials were forced to apologise for displaying wrong flag – before making same blunder again ...Middle East

Widely regarded as the pinnacle of sports, the Olympics provide unforgettable memories for those who win medals.

Unfortunately for two sets of Chinese medallists at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, the event will live long in the memory for all the wrong reasons.

China began the 2016 Olympics in strong fashion as Du Li and Yi Siling secured the silver and bronze medals respectively in the women’s 10m air rifle event.

But when it came to the medal ceremony, the pair and millions more were left in a state of total disbelief as their flags were hoisted.

That’s because the incorrect Chinese flag was displayed.

Although the versions of the flag displayed in Rio appear strikingly similar to the actual Chinese flag, there remained a subtle but distinctive difference between the two.

The official Chinese flag has a large yellow star, which represents the Communist Party of China.

It is surrounded by four smaller stars to symbolise Chinese people of all social classes and backgrounds, with those same stars pointing towards the larger one.

But in the incorrect edition, the four smaller stars remained parallel to each other and did not point towards the larger one.

It sparked a wave of outrage on Chinese social media platform Weibo as users rushed to condemn the error.

Chinese state-run newspaper People’s Daily wrote: “The botched flag has been a source of public disappointment among Chinese netizens and viewers.”

Mario Andrada, the Rio 2016 Olympic Games executive communications director, noted the error and confirmed he would quickly correct it.

“We do understand there is a problem with the flag,” Andrada said.

“It’s very small. You have to be very familiar with the Chinese flag to understand that.

“However, we need to correct it.”

Andrada added the flags made for the Rio Games ‘had been approved by the Chinese prior to production’, but amended editions were on their way.

However, the Chinese firm that was blamed for the error insisted they were not to blame.

“We are not responsible for the wrong Chinese national flags that are used at the Olympics ceremonies,” a spokesperson for Zheijang Wuyi Jinyu Textile Co Ltd said.

“The national flags we’ve manufactured are for the audiences. Being Chinese, how can we get the Chinese national flags wrong?!”

The Rio Olympic committee later conceded the incorrect Chinese flags had been manufactured in Brazil.

Thankfully, the correct Chinese flag was used for the remainder of the 2016 Olympics.

But, in a remarkable mishap, the wrong Chinese flag was wheeled out one last time.

As China’s women’s volleyball team collected the country’s 26th and final Olympic medal in Brazil, the flag with the parallel stars was hoisted up.

The error kicked up another serious stink on Weibo.

One user said: “Making such a mistake again is really absurd! Chinese people can’t accept the apology from Rio Olympic Committee.”

Chinese state TV also fumed over the matter as they posted a picture of the incorrect flags along with the caption: “The national flag is a symbol of a country! No mistakes are allowed!”

China ultimately finished third in the 2016 Olympics medal table with 26 gold medals, one fewer than Great Britain and 20 less than the United States.

The nation’s tally of 26 gold medals was their lowest in 20 years, adding another unfortunate layer along with the flag farce to what was a bleak Olympic experience all around for the nation.

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