The Olympic Games thrive on high-performing children – some of them so young that they are not even allowed to compete in the Youth Olympic Games. Jens Weinreich discusses why it is so hard for Olympic sports federations to set age limits and shows how it leaves child athletes vulnerable to authoritarian states chasing medals and sport glory.

What does the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and space politics have to do with each other? Quite a lot and it demonstrates China’s ability to mix sport and politics in their national self-promotion, writes senior analyst Stanis Elsborg.