The Olympic Games have shown that sports and national pride are still tightly intertwined, and perhaps nowhere more so than in the minds of Chinese leaders. Now, the government is taking a step to shore up the reputation of that most dubious of national sports icons: the men’s soccer team….After the Chinese team lost its final match on Aug. 13 to Brazil 3-0, the Propaganda Department apparently got fed up with all the jokes about the men’s team.

One major newspaper received an order to stop criticizing the men’s team, a reporter for the newspaper said. Another Chinese journalist confirmed on Wednesday night that a general order along those lines had been issued by the government.

The journalists spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of government reprisal.

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