Olympic Games at the Crossroads ����After a centennial effort, modern physical culture and sports have entered their heyday. Although they have experienced twists and turns, on the whole, they have not gone astray. Recently, however, they have been at the crossroads: Should they persistently pursue the ideals and purposes of the Olympic Games, or should they get bogged down in the mire of money worship? ����Physical culture and sports aim to build up people's health and physique and enhance exchange and friendship through competitions. However, recent scandals occurred in the sports circles have made people feel that modern physical culture and sports have deviated quite far from their purposes. The most shocking scandal was the fact that some International Olympic Committee (IOC) members took brides, sources said that during the competition among cities applying for hosting the Olympic Games, somewhere between 5-7 percent of the 115 IOC members took brides by demanding the exchange of money for votes. ����From a series of scandals it is clear that physical culture and sports have been corroded by money and have deviated from the purposes of the Olympic Games. ����The tendency of money worship and the commercialization trend have led physical culture and sports to the crossroads, the ideal and spirit of the Olympic Games are faced with severe tests. WorldNews 1999-01-26 Page7 Full Story in Chinese