Pelosi warns US athletes not to risk 'incurring the anger' of 'ruthless' Chinese government during Olympics

Retired cross-country Olympic skier Noah Hoffman warns the IOC has been a ‘failure’ in protecting athletes.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent a warning message on Thursday to U.S. athletes competing in the Beijing Olympics, concluding that the Chinese communist government is "ruthless" and could damage the reputations of those competing.

Speaking at a Congressional-Executive Commission on China hearing, Pelosi told the athletes that they are "there to compete" and are not to "risk incurring the anger of the Chinese government because they are ruthless."

BEIJING OLYMPICS TO RENEW SCRUTINY ON CHINA'S HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES, INTERNATIONAL VIOLATIONS

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

"I know there is a temptation on the part of some to speak out while they are there," Pelosi added, one day ahead of the opening of the Olympic Games. "I respect that, but I also worry about what the Chinese government might do … to their reputations, to their families."

The comments from the California congresswoman follow immense criticism of the Chinese communist regime’s human rights abuses at home, as well as its violations of international law and freedoms abroad.

China's crackdown under hardline ruler Xi Jinping has been felt across wide swaths of society. Hong Kong authorities crushed anti-government protests in the city in 2019, and the central government in Beijing passed a national security law aimed at stifling dissent, leading to the arrest of activists and disbandment of civil society groups.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (Wang Ye/Xinhua via Getty Images)

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