Taipei Times
Date: Jul 23, 2016
By: AFP, TAIPEI
He was hailed as the “Warrior God” and won Taiwan’s only men’s Olympic gold, but taekwondo
Taiwanese taekwondo Olympic gold medalist Chu Mu-yen trains in Kaohsiung on July 30, 2008. Photo: AFP
hero Chu Mu-yen has had to battle back from lurid scandals since his famous victory.
Fans wept with emotion when Chu took the 2004 title in Athens as a 22-year-old, alongside female team counterpart Chen Shih-hsin, who won Taiwan’s first female gold.
However, a year later he had a spectacular fall from grace over an Internet sex scam.
Chu, who was dating a fellow taekwondo player at the time, was blackmailed by a fraud ring which claimed he arranged paid-for sex services. The Olympian admitted that he had spoken to a woman in an Internet chat room, but said he had turned down sex services.
Nevertheless, he handed over US$30,000 to the fraudsters, saying it was out of fear for his and his family’s safety.
Eventually Chu went to police when the fraud ring kept demanding more money. As a result, five people were jailed.
After the scandal, Chu took a disappointing bronze at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, where he had been tipped for gold, and retired from competition. [FULL STORY]
