The Fall of a ‘Godfather’: Olympic Champion Zhuang Xiaoyan Accuses Former Coach of Forced Medication

In the world of elite athletics, the bond between a coach and an athlete is often portrayed as sacred—a partnership of shared sacrifice and mutual triumph. But for Zhuang Xiaoyan, the woman who secured China’s first-ever Olympic judo gold medal, that bond has curdled into a public and visceral war of words.

In late 2024, Zhuang, now in her 50s, took to social media to launch a scathing attack on her former mentor, Liu Yongfu. The man once revered as the “Godfather of Judo” in China was branded by his former pupil as a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” with Zhuang alleging a dark history of manipulation, cruelty, and the forced administration of banned substances.

The ‘Poison’ Behind the Gold

The most explosive claim in Zhuang’s series of posts centers on the leverage of performance-enhancing drugs. Zhuang alleges that Liu forced athletes to consume “special drugs”—described as brown pills—which he touted as secret formulas for success. To the athletes, however, these pills were known privately as “poison.”

Zhuang claims she was fortunate enough to remain cautious and avoided taking the medication, a decision she believes saved her from the severe health complications suffered by her teammates. To support her claims, she pointed to training logs from 1991, which reportedly record Liu personally supervising the administration of these substances.

Beyond the medication, Zhuang describes a training environment that bordered on the sadistic. She depicts a regime where physical limits were ignored and athletes were pushed into a state of constant injury, denied the basic right to rest in the pursuit of podium finishes.

A Legacy of Control

Liu Yongfu’s resume is, by any traditional metric, legendary. He built the Liaoning Women’s Judo Team into a powerhouse, producing five Olympic champions: Li Zhongyun (1988), Zhuang Xiaoyan (1992), Sun Fuming (1996), Yuan Hua (2000), and Yang Xiuli (2008). He also guided world championship victories for Li Zhongyun and Leng Chunhui in 1987, and 1993.

However, Zhuang argues that this “Golden Era” was built on a foundation of control rather than genuine mentorship. She recalls her introduction to the sport as a “forced transformation.” At age 14, Zhuang was a promising shot put athlete. She claims Liu spent days lobbying her parents, even eating and drinking with her family, to convince them to switch her to judo. Looking back, Zhuang views this not as an act of talent scouting, but as the beginning of a lifelong nightmare of manipulation.

Zhuang further challenged Liu’s professional credentials, asserting that the athletes’ successes were the result of their own grueling hard work rather than Liu’s technical expertise. She specifically criticized his current venture, the Jingpu Judo training class, alleging he is using his reputation as an Olympic coach to chase profit and social media traffic.

The Catalyst: Why Now?

For over three decades, these grievances remained largely hidden. The catalyst for the current explosion appears to be a series of videos Liu posted to a short-video platform in June and July 2024. In these clips, Liu spoke about his role in discovering and cultivating Zhuang’s talent, claiming credit for her Olympic success.

For Zhuang, these videos were the final straw. On December 24, 2024, she responded with a series of long-form posts, arguing that Liu was using her legacy to build his own online brand whereas remaining “morally bankrupt” in private. Her accusations extended beyond the gym, alleging that Liu had a history of domestic violence against his wife.

A Pattern of Controversy

While these specific allegations from Zhuang are recent, Liu’s career has not been without previous scrutiny. In 2005, reports surfaced alleging that Liu had instructed athlete Sun Fuming to intentionally “fake a fall” and lose a match during the 10th National Games.

For global followers of the sport, this dispute highlights the often-hidden cost of the “gold at all costs” mentality. When a coach holds absolute power over a teenager’s future, the line between discipline and abuse can develop into dangerously blurred.

As of now, the dispute remains a public battle of narratives. While Liu’s legacy is etched in the record books of Chinese judo, Zhuang Xiaoyan is attempting to rewrite the history of those medals, stripping away the glory to reveal what she describes as a “wolf” hiding behind a coach’s whistle.

We will continue to monitor this story for any official responses from the sports governing bodies or legal filings regarding these allegations. Share your thoughts on the balance of power between coaches and athletes in the comments below.