Image over talent, isnt that how Kennedy got to become president of the USA.?

Pete, St Albans, England

Firstly - it's a child. Who cares? Children by their nature are cute and adorable. In fact, if it was a gruff old man with a great voice he'd be awesome. Secondly; I thought China was more substance over style - are you guys losing your roots to mimic the West (please don't)?

Howard, Manchester,

china is an eastern country. please dont force your values on others. it is not polite. when both girls grow uo theywill be proud for having done soemthing for the motherland. motherland is first. then the person. it is comon belief in china. " face" in china individual is part of the "whole"

gary , ceres , south africa

Pu Li- You are a legend

Alex, London,

Little girls suffer because men in high places play games with the Games--one because she's a fake, the other because she has crooked teeth. The "honor of sport" has been tarnished by a cheat at the start. The billions behind this charade would be better used to rebuild homes of earthquake victims.

Anne , Beverly, MA, USA

HOW DARE THEY SAY SUCH A THING TO A BEAUTIFUL LITTLE GIRL. NO WONDER PEOPLE WANT TO LEAVE THAT COUNTRY. CHINA SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF THEMSELVES. YANG PEIYI WOULD BE WELCOMED WITH OPEN ARMS IN THE USA.

Joan, Catawissa, USA

*Yawn*
Bunch of jealous morons.You all know London 2012 will be a total flop compared to Beijing 2008, so you decided to dirty it up and then boast "at least ours is real" (most likely it won't be).
Amusingly for London 2012 even before construction began it was running to debt, speaks wonders

Whiner, Jealous Ville, a hole somewhere

maybe it's just me but looking at the pictures of both little girls, i don't think one is cuter/prettier than the other! How sad that people are so superficial!

Doreen, Long Island, USA

An audition exercise being blown out of proportion by the media, biased reporting or not?! a report to rubbish the great in preparation for undertuning the alomost failure of not matching that performance in the 2012 games at London, can people think independently beyond what they were fed?!

TWK, Peterborough, UK

Bla, bla,bla,,,, eating your sour grapes. An article like this only shows the rest world how pitty Britain today has become. Go on to show a better opening ceremony in 2012 is the right thing to do and more useful than 100 articles like this.

TT, London, UK

Probably find this sort of thing happens all the time in showbiz.

Phil, Reading,

Mark, Leeds....... you commented..."Why do always British newspapers always critising Chinease olimpics and China? We'll see when olimpics get hear, in UK which kid UK will put so that whole world see it."

You need to learn English.....

Phil, Preston,

I can only feel pity and a huge sense of superority over this outdated government who have nothing but money and a completely tasteless view on humanity. Individual little souls are worth something. Much more than an anonymous bloated machine called Communism. Keep spraying your lawns with paint.

Saki B, London,

Nobody wants to look at an ugly little girl. No matter how good her voice. Shame on her.

Xianghi Chio, Shanhai, China

Who cares? I cant say I do; but knew there would be loads of bleeding hearts comments on this one...

Dave C, Chichester,

Who cares?:

Joe Dokes, Norman, USA

I am a Chinese student, I want to say . The hope that more foreign friends can vist to our country. Regardless of who he is, we will welcome you. We Chinese are very friendly. Only mutual understanding before they can get along better.

YanSong, XinxiangCity, china

Pu Li, what case? Maybe one based on fake information? What are you talking about?

Llyod, London,

the footprint fire is true,we've saw it at tiananmen square,but the tv men can't film it on tv,so they made a graphics to show the scene
maybe it's not every person satisfy at everything,china is not perfect,but it's certainly not terrible like some people think.
welcome to china to prove it.

moly, dalian,

no,just a lie...

Speculation!!

lynn, sichuan, china

China really dont need to do that to show that they exist and that this is a great nation.

I dont understand why the government do that.

They really waste all.

Quentin, Paris, France

Poor little girl! like a ugly betty?? I dont think so!

She´ll need years of therapy to get rid itself of this trauma...

Leo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

First of all, China has many great invention, paper, gunpowder, printing and compass.These four discoveries had an enormous global impact!This is just Ironic that it should happen during Olympic Games, a time when-theoretically- the world should unite in peace!China has done a GREAT job!! ^_^

WillJ, Melbourne, Australia

China should be ASHAMED! of themselves, how can you deny a little 7 year old with the voice of an angel her right to sing... china have produced a shocking olympics so far. London will be far better.

Caroline, Cheshire, England

Bingxia Zou, I know China VERY well, all this is typical and yes a fake, your country produces more fakes than any other so why should we expect anything other than a fake games, fake singer, fake democracy, fake fireworks. What is so sad is China is REALLY good without the fakes but you dont get it

Lloyd, London,

As a Chinese girl,I should say,please don't blame the Chinese people,we also feel sorry and angry about the guy who made this bad desicion,but, please believe,tthere are bad guy and good guy in every country,there are foolish guy in China as well,but most of Chinese people are friendly and nice.

chen fei, Guangzhou, China

That is so mean what the Chinese have done to upset a little chinese girl just because she has rotten teeth and a mole doesn't mean shes ugly, her parents must sue the people who said that to her, i don't want to be mean to the Chinese but they are really gay saying that, war on China!

Jack, ACT, Australia

How come no one is making a fuss about the disabled person in the wheelchair of the London 8 Minute Olympic opening preview are not really disabled?

Peter, USA,

Lip-sync did happen. But Chen Qigang did not say anything bad about Yang Peiyi in the interview. The media twisted his words and invented the meme of “crooked teeth/ugly/fat face” to play up this issue. The names of Yang Peiyi and Lin Miaoke were both on the playbill of the opening ceremony. Yang was not banned. Google zonaeuropa and peiyi to find more info.

Jeremy, Miami, USA

OK, first of all, I am not being biased against China. It doesn't matter to me the slightest bit which country's goverment made this disgusting decision. How can you say that to a (lovely looking, by the way) person?

Charlotte, Leamington Spa, England (soon to be Australia!)

I can not belive my eyes. I read so many stupid comments. In every ceremory in China there are people responsible for cheering guests. It is the tradition and culture. Nothing with the Olympics. Nothing with the Communist party. Come on, guys. Take off your colour glasses. Enjoy the games.

Roger, Auckland,

China claims that they have honoured both girls equally. Ridiculous.
In fact, They've SHAMED both of them! They will not be able to hold their head up high without being named ugly or fake. 200 pound beauty the movie? Totally.

Angie, Hong Kong,

And the roman games ( even though the crowd rarely decided to kill people ) pitted man vs man in a glorious show of beauty and violence.

I'm chinese as well, and I'm an american who grew up watching folks getting their music taken because they were deemed unfit for society to see.Boo on step back

Kev, Milpitas, USA

Whoever made the decision to replace the original girl based on her appearance owes this sweet little girl an apology and should let her sing a song at the closing ceremony, It would go a long way with the world watching who found this lipsync stunt in very poor taste.

Bruce, Los Angeles, USA

Why dont you take a look at this website. Read what a REAL person is seeing. Someone who isnt blinded by their government.

Dont even start with the proporganda from China, when you can't even think for yourself.

Serena, NY, USA

I think that it's discusting that a child with so much talent has been told she's not cute enough to have her face seen. However, In a world as obsessed with image as ours, I think that most other countries in the world would do the same thing to "keep up appearances" so it's not all China to blame.

Charlotte, London, England

This is just a sport event, like a show. Why does it matter that the little girl didnt get a chance to show her face? So many of movie stars are fake. Do you see anyone ranting on them? NO! Its just these people and their narrow minds. Stop thinking the way your media thinks, and think for yourself!

Serena, NY, USA

It's so funny. Why are so many guys here stick on the darkness so they can not see the happiness and future? The truth is, this opening ceremony is the best and most spectacular! Don't be afraid. China will move forward leaving this anti-China noisy far behind.

Richard, Toronto,

The real travesty of all this is that the girls are being made cannon fodders by the press while they're still in their tender age, and it wasn't even their fault.

D Sloan, Seattle, US

Fakeness is fakeness. Wrong is wrong. I am a Chinese. I am shamed of what those powerful guys have done to these two innocent girls. Yes, the two girls might be happy with their roles now. Because they are too young to distinguish glory from shame. What will happen to them when they are 20, or 60?

Li Ren, Chongqing, China

why everything the world does is offensive to America?
cultures are different and people have different roles the girls
took part on their roles and played it perfectly do not judge.

Mike Matias, Isabela , Puerto Rico

if such thing did'nt happen, will you think that YANG is more pretty than LIN. it is just sympathy. when you talk about a country rudely , think about yourself , to say is always easier than to do. you treat the girls as a tool to against china. that is a pity . i have been to china for

james, chang chun, china

This article written in a hateful tone only devalued itself. As far as I know, the singing girl and performing girls are both happy with their roles. The real abuse is article itself and Tara Desi's comment which misjudge the real feeling of the girls. I hope they won't read such comments at all.

Beverly, York, England

Emotional Child Abuse: "You're not pretty enough" is the CP message to Yang Peiyi. "You are not talented enough to sing" to Lin Miaoke. Both little girls are VICTIMS of an ABUSIVE government. The WORLD has again witnessed China's true colors: sacrifice innocence for perceived political gain. SHAME!

Tara Desi, Los Angeles, USA

And yes, we can "applaud" China for otherwise making the opening ceremony extravagent, but that girl went through grueling competition to be there, and she wasn't. They wanted to show the world the "true" faces of China for a good reputation, but in the end that is exactly what they lost. Shameful.

Alicia, Malmö, Sweden

Setting politics aside, I think it's very sad that that poor little girl was told she was not allowed to perform because she was, in their perspectives, simple not "cute" enough. (Which in my opinion is totally ludicrous, SHE'S ADORABLE).

Alicia, Malmö, Sweden

Not everything is what it seems, and yes governments do lie both to their own people and to the outside world and not just about olympics.

horatio, rawlings, usa

If this fakery is OK, then we all owe a big apology to Milli Vanilli.

pteranodon, Coralville,

"I'm sorry, but you're not pretty enough". poor little girl, she will remember this for the rest of her LIFE! What happens in your childhood is so important for your confidens when you grow up. And beside, I think she is very cute!

cecilie, oslo, norway

It's outrageous how the western media makes every effort to disgrace China, even by twisting the stories. I honestly hope they are not doing this purposely for political reasons, but simply due to a lack of understanding of Chinese culture.

Yang, Toronto, Canada

There are so much positive progress happening in China every single day, don't you wonder why all you hear is the negative, and lots of times they are not even the truth?

Yang, Toronto, Canada

'Fake', 'shame': who has the right to define?
For differences in concepts of representation and composition between the east and the west. Please mind the gap before you impose you Western notion upon their good intentions. Instead, sympathy to them as a developing nation is more appropriate.

win, london,

It is well known that kids around age 6-7 start ghanging their baby teeth with the ones their going to have for the rest of their lives. I thought that the "cute" thing in the funny christmas song "all I want for christmas is my two front teeth" was exactly the missing teeth.

Valia , thessaloniki, Greece

The girl who sang the song is cuter to me than the one China used in its ceremony. The real singer looks more like a typical little girl being herself in front of the cameras. There's nothing more precious-looking than a child being honestly cute, not handled and rehearsed in cuteness.

Judy, California, USA

What are you people afraid of? What do you even know about China? Seems like there are lots of people who are simply paranoid about China - there are lots of things wrong with the government there but change will happen gradually. People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

Wang, London, England

Loved the whole thing. And i dont want to get into the politics. But the dear little girl with the wonderful voice, she would have been adored all over the world. She too is cute as cute can be.

anita bridle, poole Dorset, England

Conrad, Shepherds Bush.

Excuse me, but you sound completely taken in. Of course it looks perfect. That is the tasty dish of propaganda you are so enthusiatically swallowing. Do'nt be such a wide eyed political illiterate. China plays a very dark game on the world playing field. Wake up mate!

Boris, Belgravia, London

I see all these claims of 'faking' as cultural misunderstanding. Chinese hospitality is like that, hosts will do everything they can to make sure guests are all happy. If you enjoyed it, you shouldn't pick on the host because they tried too hard. This is ungrateful and narrow-minded.

Yan Song, London,

Little 7yr old Yang Peiyi is quite simply adorable, with the voice of an angel. Sorry Communist Party stuck their noses into the whole thing. Poor little Yang Peiyl. This is a good lesson for her and others: The Golden Rule" Always treat people the way you want to be treated.

Marilyn, Beverly Hills, USA

kiosk workers being volunteers? I think you'll find they had to "volunteer" else find their career prospects permanently blighted... remember, this is a totalitarian state where you are expected to volunteer to keep the streets etc. There is nothing voluntary about China

pcooke, Gloucester,

Ever seen the ladies in yellow dresses who present the honours at the Tour de France? Are any of them NOT beautiful and very slim?

On 'fake fans', isn't it better that the seats are filled? The empty seats are from sponsors' allocations right? It's rather sporting to cheer for both sides.

Conrad, Shepherd's Bush,

So which is fairest?? Put a seven year old in front of 92,000 people and a TV audience of 4 bn and expect her to carry it off, or a slightly older girl who, having been on TV already, is probably stage school trained??

How could the poor little mite have followed that if she had carried it off.?

Pu Li, Guangxi, PRC

China have made a superb effort to host the games. I was at the Fencing final the other night and can assure people that the Olympic venues are nothing short of superb. All Beijing info kiosk workers are VOLUNTEER undergrads from Beijing Universities.

Stop knocking China. applaud them.

Mike, Beijing, China

The fact that this has become headline news all over the world is most cruel thing to this poor little girl.

Let's face it, physical appearance matters. But its simply unethical to make a big news out of a little girls appearance -- A lot of grown ups can't even take it.

jc, FL, USA

I feel very ridiculous to know about the news. Yang looks very cute. If she is deemed not pretty,how could the director allow Lian Huan, the famous male singer to stand on the stage?Most importanly, it was her who sang the song.
In fact, such kind of disgusting really hurt our country's image.

jessica, Suzhou, China

I'm not sure why this becomes an issue. It's digital age, it's times of entertainment. Look at the TV shows around us. Can anyone promises to me that they are all real? Those who keep critisizing China based on some misled news reports, I really regret for them.

guo, Beijing, China

Wow!!! If this is not a wake up call to all Americans I don't know what is. Do not take your freedoms for granted, and be very thoughtful when you go to the polls in November. The choice is yours. Do not choose to be led as sheep and let the government make decisions for you,as this is what happens

CherylBevans, phoenix AZ, usa

China is a fast developing country where the newly rich and successful want to show off. Of course this happens the world over but it is where development is newest and fastest that a materialistic image-based perspective on life is at its most extreme leading to incidents like this.

DW, Beijing, China

Once again, conservative politicians show their absolute lack of social depth with another blazing show of hypocrisy, lack of empathy, due their stunted moral-intellectual development. Be they left or right, conservatives are the same all over. Dangerous!

Gary Williams, Kamloops, Canada

I am Chinese and I am deeply disappointed in China, especially since the whole thing was so unnecessary. Yang Peiyi is actually really cute and so is her teeth. There is no perfect look and no one embodies the "face of Olympics" better than a girl who has talent above all else - sadly not recognized

Kat, Vancouver, Canada

You can't compare this "scandal" with illusions of Hollywood, people going to movies know that it is make belief, they are not deceived and ppl are credited in the end for their role. This "performance" was deceptive, and most importantly it almost let an undeserving girl take all the credit!

Dan, London, Canada

Wow, how can Britain have anyone singing in the London Olympics if dental health is a pre-requisite.

Come-on people, you've got four years to get your chicklets bleached and straightened.

Smile.

Steve Canuck, Toronto , Canada

Completely agree with Mark from Barnsley. It was a SHOW people a performance. Why get angry with the magician? The organising body are not fakers just very good magicians. They created a spectacular show.

Simone, York, UK

I think those that are pointing out that TV is fantasy are missing what the uproar is about. It has nothing to do with being duped. It is just that blatant cruelty towards a child bothers some of us. I don't blame China just the official.

Robert Heise, Minneapolis, Mn

The ignorance of westerners is really appalling! How can you be manipulated by the Times so easily? How can you tell that the story is true or not? The Times told us a year ago that Madelene was murdered by her parents. Remember? The media is the worst part in human society. Evil and ignorant.

Laura, Leicester,

Who said the girl is "ugly", or even "too ugly"? It's the western media, not the original Chinese source. It's a show,not a singing contest, so why does it become such a big deal?
On the other hand, both girls are winners, considering if another girl was picked.

Jun, Boston, USA

Well said Dave

Chris Houghton, Wigan,

No ugly child, only ugly mind. ugly chinese leader!

rona, montreal,

Before attacking the Chinese, who sang in My Fair Lady??? Julie Andrews was not considered pretty enough...and Audrey lip synched...and she took all the credit.

Eva, London,

Just a line or two directed at the OTHER pretty girl.....the one with a voice like an angel......

All that girl could do,Yang.was to imitate you !

You are the real thing and I think your country should make amends by having you sing at the closing of the olympics so the whole world can see you

Dave Barton, Ontario, Canada

Ok. If this is really bothering anyone, I've got some more bad news. That wasn't a real helicopter in Miss Saigon, and Peter Pan was held by wires. This is theatre, folks, and this stuff happens all the time! Get over it!

Mark, Barnsley,

Are we so desperate we have to make political capital out of a lip-synching 9 yr old? The media are just pandering to our worst instincts and prejudices because it sells newspaper. As for the people here who are so easily led, WAKE UP you fools, you are being herded like sheep.

gary, london,

Let us not forget the victim in this sad story.. a seven year old girl. Disgraceful!!

Kiarie, Ulm, Germany

Am I surprised? Not at all. Athletes uses illegal drugs, IOC does everything to that suites their own pockets and of course the organizers do anything to suite the purpose of "The best Olympics Ever"

Ostein, Hamar, Norway

Who'd have thought that the Chinese Communist Party could be so cruel? This is definitely the worst thing they've ever done...

Jack, Liverpool,

John, Beijing, China

In your logic, Hollywood will go bust overnight for faking shots in EVERY SINGLE movie for a century. Let's talk about its morality & compensations for the viewers, before move on to the 9 yrs-old kid.

Hu, London, England

At the end of the day it was a very cruel thing to do to a seven year old child. Cruel, heartless and totally unnecessary. Shame on the officials concerned.

Bergman Coffey, Belfast,

Actually the 7 year olds a cute kid. But thats the way. You don't meet the criteria you'll get cut. Some corporal in Austria thought of that 60 years ago. And with ILM based in Pinewood we can top the opening ceremony easy.....

James, Glasgow,

Katie, go back to school, will you? China "incidentally" have 20 times larger population than Britain, so take account those proportions before you start drawing any comparisons! Britain is pulling nicely above its weight!

Silver, London, UK

Silver, London,

What a wonderful idea. No one wants to look at ugly children - as your own Queen Victoria said, 'An ugly baby is a nasty object.' Keep them in darkened rooms until they grow more attractive or send them to a plastic surgeon. A silent, good-looking child would have been even better.

Hank, Los Angeles, USA

CHINA is a total fraud in far more ways than one! Apparently superficial concerns about the kid`s teeth led to this sort of nonsense that we might expect in some braindead place such as Hollywood! Well it is worth noting that the Chinese are just,if not more,vain and superficial as well as braindead

Fred Christensen, Uppsala , Sweden

why my words can't pass the exam ,or this article is only for west people ,if you want normal chinese people listen to you ,listen to us first

leon , changchun, china

What the comittee has done is perfectly logical, if the people that bought the seats havnt turned up then why shouldnt they find people who want to go? Frankly it shows the chinese people in a poor light that those who have bought tickets dont want to go to their own games.

Katie , London, UK

According to the Chinese regulation, fake singer in not permitted in commercial performence. If this happen, audience can ask for refundment of ticket fee. I wonder whether does the Olympic openning ceremony belong to "commercial performence". Obviouly, it's a violation of Chinese law.

John, Beijing, China

And personally i think Britain will have a hard time topping the O.C which is why the media has turned to nit picking Chinas performance, who incidentally have 9 more gold medals than us. Shame we have to resort to this childish behavior.

Katie , London, UK

That's showbusiness!
Lin Miaoke will join the ranks of the talentless goodlookers like Paris Hilton, Victoria Beckham and Jordan.
Yang Peiyi will sing like an angel well into adulthood.
AND SHE CAN ALWAYS GET HER TEETH STRAIGHTENED.

GJB, Slough, Berkshire

so what you only need to look at hollywood or magazines and adverts to see we are even more shallow in the west seems every item i read is having a dig at the Chinese its yet another non story and something we have been doing for many years only now were getting on our high horse

richard, grimsby, england

From the country of fake goods the latest ersatz product; the fake Olympics. I wonder how many Chinese athletes performances will also turn out to be fake?

Jonathan, London,

Going to any lengths to display to the world their success and harmony - their olympics are mirroring their government.

Pete R., Stoke, UK

China's not the first to pull this stunt, remember Milli Vanilli?

Phil Chin, Toronto, Canada

Hollywood. 1930s. Nuff said.

john, london,

What did anyone really expect from this country? Normality? Fairness? A lack of propaganda?

Alastair, Alicante, Spain

Britney spears lip sync all the time, sugarbabes, etc... etc.. yet it's ok for them to just look good. But when china does it, it's all politcal and how they are trying to spread communisium around the world.

peter, newcast;e,

This is deeply shocking & symptomatic of what I see as a charade from the Chinese brigade. Whatever respect I had of them is lost now. A 7 year old girl, and looks? I am glad my daughter was not born in China, otherwise she would be discriminated against for her dark skin!! What next, I wonder...

SB, Singapore,

It was a beautiful ceremony, the whole world is a fraud not just China. Why not just enjoy it for the entertainment that it was instead of picking it apart like news vultures?

Derek Adair, Nashua, NH, USA

haha was at the b. volleyball and sitting beside me was a large block of yellow shirted young Chinese girls. Every so often they would ring out in chorus and bang their batons. Didnt make much difference though as their were large sections of the stadium seats empty, mostly in huge media seating.

Bruce, Beijing,

I'd like to point out that western TV watchers get cheated on 24/7.

robert , vancouver, bc

I looked at the so-called ugly girl and thought "But she's adorable!" Those in charge who made a foolish mistake are the ones who appear ugly..

Berta, Abington, Massachusetts, USA

Again, this is another "face saving" tactics used by Communist China. I don't think Deng Xiaopin was good looking also.

KC Goh, Subang, Malaysia

Obviously Mr Cassidy did not watch BBC3's program on body doubles. So what if she was lip synched?I don't remember a brewharhar over Reed being replaced by a virtual double halfway through Gladiator. Would there been a fuss if it was a hologram? Stop poking China.

Fred, London,

Surely a cosmetic dentist somewhere in the world will offer to give little Yang Peiyi a set of beautiful teeth that will match her voice. At least I hope so.

Gino, las vegas,

Well its how the low the chinese government can stoop to..!

Raghu, LA, USA

The little seven year old girl is ADORABLE!

Judith, Edmond OK, USA

There must be countless incidents of lip synching happening over the years - Audrey Hepburn's singing was over-dubbed in "My Fair Lady" - so perhaps the Yanks and Poms need to take the blame for originating this practice.

Phil, Bow, London, UK

Being discarded because of a little fault in one's appearance (I find little Lin Miaoke is just as lovely as any girl her age) is very sad, indeed. But this would have happened anywhere else in the world under the circumstance. Please don't be hypocritical.

Enrica, Genoa, Italy

Leon, China

But the girl was not 'more clever to sing the song.' The clever singing girl was left out because her face did not fit. The pretty girl then faked the clever girls singing. This kind of authoritarian, unfair behaviour towards children chills our western hearts.

Boris, Belgravia, London

its a good thing freddy mercury wasn't chinese

stevo, sydney, australia

We are not watching the Olympics this year precisely because of this contrived, false and quite sinister display of forced participation. China might think it's moment in the sun is here- but Tibet and many other countries crushed into submission know it's true colours.

Lee, London, UK

Dubbing music during large outdoor performances is not unprecedented.. At the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, the famed tenor Luciano Pavarotti, then 71, lip-synched an aria because of his age and the cold weather. But the recording was still his voice, as is usually the case when performers lip-synch.

William King, gloucester, england

Yang is heart meltingly beautiful - with just enough baby face to make you go "awhhh". Innocence abounds, no saccherin in sight. I hope her parents go with the "older child" explanation...

Mary, Melbourne, Australia

I am angry when I knew the truth. China now has a lot of problems but it's not as serious as this article say. If you have been in China you will get this. I have seen the volunteers with yellow tees in a soccer game. Their work is applauding for Chinese opponents. I think it's not bad.

Daniel, Tianjin, China

So what.

Chris, Ashford, Middx, England

China's leaders are suffering 'smaller man' syndrome. They are so desperate to put the most glamorous face on, to outdo all other Olympics and win more medals than the US. Whatever happened to sporting goodwill?

That little singer deserved fame and recognition for her talent.

Annabel, Worcester,

What does this say? How shallow. How shallow they think the world population is, how shallow they are... Who would not have thought this little girl was beautiful, crooked teeth and all.
I am disgusted at the fantasy world created through image that most people cannot live up to. Lets get real

Darcy, Palm Coast, FL

The West leaderships should be proud rather than dismissive; the same sort of tactics used in all Olympic games have been transported to the East!

What is more frightening: that China uses shallow methods to create an impression of communal unity or that a country could gain success without them?

Jack, Chester,

Come on Simon Cowell has been doing this for years with pop musicains!

Dean, Southampton, England

Im sure this lovely and indeed very pretty little girl feels bad enough without the global tabloids slapping her all over their papers. Come on Times! I expected more!

Debbie, Leicester, UK

no one i know in london even watched the opening ceremony. we were all either at work or watching the fireworks over tskhinvali rather than beijing. sorry china, russia spoiled your cgi and smokescreen party.

james, london,

Someone please remind me exactly why the Olympic Games were awarded to China?

Barbara, TN, USA

Everything that the Chinese gov did is for the Olympic games.They chose two little girls,one showed her song for us,the other showed he cute smile to us,that doesn't mean it will be a fake,because the offical admitted that and told us in public.

clark, zhengzhou, China

I am sorry to hear the misjudes upside. In China, a ticket to the open ceremony is so rare that could not meet the demand. Most of us watched TV. To be a volunteer in the olympic games in being is a great honor for all the people here who love sports and peace. But a few people could get the honor

Irene, Shandong, China

Yes everyting in China is faked. I saw with my eyes the big foot steps in the Beijing sky, yet people believed that the footsteps were faked. Now we have fake singers. China got 12 gold medals, I am sure some people will believe they are faked.
Say it 1000 times, people will belive you.

shengqi, Beijing,

What's the problem - the West is more obsessed with image over substance than China is. As for lip-synching, look at the film My Fair lady where Audrey Hepburn lip-synched to someone who could actually sing but who didn't look good enough to play the part - no-one complained about that..

Mark, Kingston Upon Hull, UK

Wow, I bet most of you guys posting anti-China comments here have never been to China, let along understand it, see how your minds are manipulated by your government/media, another form of brainwash.

Renee Li, Chengdu/Houston, China/USA

This is revolting, if hardly surprising. As Mike Cassidy says, this Olympics is a complete farce, an exercise in suffocating humane and political discomfort in an excessive display of seeming-to-be.

Aleksandra Buhl Thostrup, Ringwood, England

This is a very sick society indeed.

Hendry, Wentworthville, aUSTRALIA

Does anyone remember the movie, "Singing in the Rain"? This same beauty/talent swithch was potrayed. The scam was exposed and the talented girl was one with the "happy ever after" ending. It will work the same for Yang Peiyi now that the truth is known. Bless her heart.

Alice, Brainerd, USA

Stongly agree with Dru Brooke-Taylor that the Olympics should stay in Athens.

Also, the article is not criticising China - simply pointing out what happened. Don't shoot the messenger.

Graham Howells, Brasília, Brazil

To Mike Cassidy,
This is indeed a major political event, open your eyes, and PLEASE don't be so oblivious. oh and before you leave comments such as " people were forcibly displaced from their homes" check the facts. How do you know? Did they tell you personally? Did you witness it with your eyes?

Anise Schaltz, Vienna, Austria

See the bright side, they admit their mistakes and reveal the truth themselves right now. No need outer HELP any more.

Charlie, Bedford, England

I think the cheer squads are a great idea. The fact that so many seats are reserved for uninterested olympic officials and corporate sponsors is shameful. Atheletes who have worked hard deserve a supportive crowd, and it's great that volunteers are there to ensure even support for all nationalities.

Paul , London, UK

Don't be so hard on China. Take a moment to look at all the winners of the talent shows in our very own Great Britain. Would you not agree that they are all above average if not highly attractive people with mostly average talent? Chosen democratically by the viewing public it should be noted.

Gerard, Belfast, Northern Ireland

I am digusted by this. I have a jar of sweet and sour sauce in my cupboard right now - and that is where it will stay because I refuse to eat it until Hu Jintao apologises for this.

ted, newcastle,

i am chinese, in your news ,you said she is "ugly" . can't you just to care about the two girls. truth is important , but i don't believe this is what you think.
we may do some choice to choose a girl who is more clever to sing the song , what is wrong is that , you are wrong .

leon , chang chun , china

Nice. As if the farce that is the set of Olympic conduct rules imposed by China wasn't ridiculous enough. That poor little girl must be devastated. How callous do you have to be to look at a seven-year-old child and say 'na, not cute enough'?
Less great nation, more international laughing stock.

Eleanor , Matlock,

1936 all over again ...?

Antoine, Warsaw, Poland

This may be a detail. But it is an important one that touches ordinary peoples lives. It would have been better in the eyes of the world that a whole choir of disabled children were to open the Olympics, rather than a faked perfect pretty girl. Try melting hearts instead of upsetting and annoying.

Boris, Belgravia, United Kingdom

I am angry after I knew this fact.
It is not acceptable to cheat in Olympics, even it has a name "for Homeland Interest".

Michael, Shanghai, China

If my country told me I was ugly in this humiliating way - which this girl is not - I would plan to leave as soon as I finished my education and could leave.
I would go to a country that does not treat it's citizens in this way- one that values honesty and talent.

andrew, London, UK

I think little Yang Peiyi looks lovely and she should have been given a chance, crooked dental work or not - no one is perfect!

Elizabeth Smart, shandong, China

who cares? There's a lot more important things in the news, home and abroad.

In china, the forced "re-education labour camps".

In England, the new bill proposed to make public enquires secret.

This is like celeb news!

Andrew, Durham, England

Why do always British newspapers always critising Chinease olimpics and China? We'll see when olimpics get hear, in UK which kid UK will put so that whole world see it. Yes its wrong what they done but it's past, look to the futures. Britain has homeless people leaving on streets, not only China.

Mark, Leeds, UK

Lena Zavaroni and Bonnie Langford.

I rest my case..........

Pu Li, Guangxi, PRC

just think about it yourselves. China is a big country, which has 13 billion people. A good-looking and good-singing girl is very easy to find. The government didn't need to cheat. It's meaningless.

Wong, Guangzhou,

You mean much the same as BBC has been doing to find the perfect face and accent to read the news on TV and radio? Moira Stewart story hasn't even gone stale. Stop moaning Times. Concentrate your efforts in topping Chinese performance in 2012.

Prabhat, UK,

Jim Stuart-Young, Shanghai, China said: "Remember the Los Angeles Olympics where the burning arrow shot by an archer was meant to light the flame, but in reality the arrow missed the target and the flame self ignited".
I think it's your memory failing..Barcelona, and he didn't miss...

john, london, England

Not having a child sing because of crooked teeth, clearly shows shortsightedness and a mean spirit on the part of someone.
But criticizing the Chinese for filling seats at events that were not sold out? I wonder how badly they had to beat people to be bussed in for free tickets? Sign me up

Bill Anderson, York, USA

Same thing happened in our UK church school - fifty years ago - a well dressed, cute , well-off little girl - replaced a poor - not so well-turned-out scruffy little girl - to be placed in front of our new grotto honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary for a newspaper photo/article - sad but true.

Anna, USA, Ex-Pat,

Can we expect any more integrity and honesty from the London 2012 organisers? I doubt it.

Chris K, Cheltenham, UK

loooooooooool.

The more they try to give a good image to the world (hide murders - move the "ugly" girl singer..), the more the chinese government show a bad image all over the world.

Raphaël, Versailles, France

I was shocked to see this article. I know their things are often fake but even the opening of Olympics? I thought that it was wonderful but since I've known the truth about this, it just disappointed me. I wanted them to be more truthful about this. I wonder if they ever cared about girls feelings.

Laura(Park se won), Seoul, Korea

Well..well..well..So after London decided that the city won't be able to top Beijing, now they start with the black propaganda. Is it impossible that the other girl was not picked because she isn't fit to perform the acrobatic flying with the kite?

Andy, Medan, Indonesia

I don't think we should be so quick to judge; we may need to CGI a few stadiums in come 2012...

Russ, London,

Funny how a nation where mere decades ago still had its people die of starvation, has developed so much that there is time for extravances like vanity - to this magnitude. As much as I admire many of China's achievements, I am not sure what to make of this incident.

Jamie Howlett, London, UK

Honestly speaking, I'm a Chinese. I'm really angry about this. But the two girls were innocent. As you say many things of China are ridiculous. Chinese government always hides the truth, leaders don't want foreigners to knwo it. Chinese entertainment is dark and dirty. I'm ashamed about this ,really

zhang, China,

Ok, they added a bit of cosmetics to the show. That's what it was children, a big, spectacular show. Entertainment and it was done extremely well. I thought the chaps with the oars were very impressive. I also take my hat off to the cheerleaders who danced for simply ages as all nations walked past.

Dr Nicholas Ashley, Huntingdon, England

I feel sorry for the "ugly" child (who looks just as cute in my opinion) but sad to say the exact same thing would have happened in the US or UK. Choosing image over talent is a result of Western ideals in the first place.

Margot, Fife,

What's new? Hollywood has been doing it for years.

Kevin Straw, Leicester,

You don't understand the real china. Maybe in your eyes china is a country with a lot of fakes. But do you know what a real China is?
It's unfair to have so much bias to china.

Bingxia Zou, Shenzhen, China

In Canada, on the visit of the Pope in 1984 (or was it 1985?), everyone made fun of the little girl with the fat nose and the vampire's fangs who sang for His Holiness. Her name was (and still is) Céline Dion...

Errol, London, United Kingdom

Hi, my western friends.
BeiJing can not represent whole China, China is still a developing country. So all the things you can imagine such as corruption, big gap between rich and poor, truth conceal, unfair, can be found here. But, most people's life is getting better.

kingston wang, Beijing, China

Since so many of the competitors cheat by taking drugs (as we'll discover in good time) it's really quite fitting. Interesting that so many people are bothering to watch anway. Although only 19 comments on this article - much fewer than any property article!

Sebastian Cargutt, Leeds,

I still think that after the last games, the opportunity should have been taken for the games to stop travelling and stay in Athens for ever.

Dru Brooke-Taylor, Bristol,

They faked the fireworks? They FAKED THE FIREWORKS??

I've decided it was all CGI.

Chris, London,

I guess this sums up China, NOTHING is as it appears. How sad that both girl's feelings may have been hurt , one because she was called ugly and other because her singing was not thought good enough. Kind of takes the shine of the spirit of the Olympics.

john, woking, surrey

Another Olympics fact: the international torch relay was devised by a J. Goebbels for the 1936 Games. It had no precedent in history, just wonderful PR for the Nazis.

In many of the countries the torch went in 1936 there were protests. Now in 2008 China suggests the protests are unprecedented!

Colin, London, UK

I love reading "The Times", however I am becoming exceedingly miffed at its habitual need to knock China over any trivial matter.
I look forward to the opening ceremony of the London Olympics and watching the Clackheaton Gurners' Choral Society's performance of the British national anthem.

Mick, Cork, Ireland

What is wrong with you guys?

Any OG opening ceramony has been an art piece with some inevitable artistic decorations here and there.

Now we have fake Olympics. Is it the new trick of London 2012 that plans to destroy 2008 opening genius, realizing that it will not be equaled artistically?

E.Wong, Amsterdam, NL

Actually I care more about the little girl's feelings. I think she must have been under great pressure. Dose it make any sense to dig this kind of thing out? Why not think more for Little Lin Miaoke? She is just nine!

Jia zhelu, Zhengzhou, China

a bit of digital trickery and some extras adds to the event like in a film - nothing wrong there

BUT another little girl being used - "because we were concerned with the interests of the nation." - well - that is SO wrong - what is a nation? it is people !! if u dont put people first u r lost

andrew b, stourport, UK

That was openly an artistic presentation of the Confucian theme of harmony! Not an exhibition in the first place.

You may also point out that the ceremony was directed by Zhang Yimou (a famous film director), not by the chairman of the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee. Is that a problem?

Edward, Bristol, UK

don`t always have more bias to china, it`s unfair

jonathan, cambridge,

'Before you all explode in a puff of furious indignity, let's remember that lip-syncing is not at all unusual in our entertainment industry. '

No but the 7 year-old child was not part of our entertainment industry. This is telling young children that talent is secondary to image. Heartbreaking.

Clare, Birmingham,

it worked for aled jones so why not china. empty seats...so what. they do it at english cricket pitches like lords and allow kids to come in to see games. stop micro analysing trivial bits and peaces and smile! lfe is good. from what little ive seen so far its all pretty good

richard pope, dubai, uae

Oh give it a break. Once again, ridiculous anti-china sniping. China has put on an impressive show. Do you really want them to risk a helicopter crew being hit by fireworks for your viewing pleasure? Should they leave the stands empty? We should be following their lead for 2012.

Nova , London, UK

All of this is just typical of the Olympics. It's all a big sell. The sport is secondary.

John Traynor, Birmingham, UK

China is all about fakes. They steal and produce copyrighted art, music, fashion, design and pharmacuticals, where's the pride in that? So is anyone surprised that they would fake this. It would not surprise me to learn their olympic competitors are all fakes.

Viv, London, England

If this is what they do to the opening ceremony to make China look good, what might their athletes be up to behind closed doors?

James, London,

Before you all explode in a puff of furious indignity, let's remember that lip-syncing is not at all unusual in our entertainment industry. Audrey Hepburn lip synced her songs in My Fair Lady. You don't think she was chosen because of her looks? The Olympics are nothing if not entertainment.

Phil, London, UK

yeah well, look at the BIG PICTURE, its all about other countries trying to make China look bad by this. I'm sure other countries have done the same things, except their not as much publicised, since they aren't China.

David, Perth,

It worked for Milli Vanilli.

Remember the Los Angeles Olympics where the burning arrow shot by an archer was meant to light the flame, but in reality the arrow missed the target and the flame self ignited. Its all about entertainment and illusion.

Heres a newsflash for you, the guy at the end of the ceremony who lit the flame wasn't actually flying..... WIRES WERE USED!!!

Jim Stuart-Young, Shanghai, China

There's not one in any Olympics in history has there been a 100% attendance. Ppl will fall out last minute. I think to drum up issues like spending a year on the 55-minute footprint of fire and putting in volunteers at the empty seats are all too petty and unnecessary. They're just logistics.

Pay Nedla, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

What is dictatorship or democracy? Does one-party always mean more dictatorship than 2-100 parties with one government?
What is truth or lie?
What is sport or entertainment?
What is fake or real?
As long as life goes on well, nothing matters.

Gary, Derby,

Sounds like something from Berlin 1936 doesnt it. Like when the Fuhrer removed all the homeless from Berlin because it wasnt good for their image abroad.
Tyranical regimes paint the illusion to distort reality. The greater you make the lie the more easier it is to believe.

Andy, York,

What we see about China's appearance is that it looks good only by cheating and they are so short sighted as to think we will be impressed

W Watkin, andover, UK

Of course it is. I can't seem to understand why people thought it was going to happen otherwise. It is a ridiculous event, and I believe it to be dececrating the image of the Games. All that so they can have more money, more power and take over the world. And everybody applause. Nice world.

Will, Madrid, Spain

Yet more evidence that this is about CHINA looking good, a major political event rather than a major sporting event.
please do not forget this is a dictatorship on show. The thousands of people who were forcibly displaced from their homes without compensation will not forget!

mike cassidy, gloucester, england