The International Olympic Committee has asked the world governing body for gymnastics to investigate whether members of the Chinese women’s team were too young to compete in the Olympics.

The  international gymnastics federation, known as the F.I.G., have been asked by the I.O.C to take up the issue with the Chinese gymnastics federation and report back on Friday.

Last month online records were posted on official sites in China, listing the Chinese gymnasts and their ages along with gymnast ages being listed in the official Chinese news media. These ages indicated that members of the team might be as young as 14, a cause for concern as a gymnast must turn 16 in the year of the Olympics to compete in the Games. Copies of passports of the athletes in question were then provided by Chinese officials in as evidence that the athletes in question were old enough.

“More information has been brought to light and brought to our attention, so we decided to go to the federation and have them look into it further,” said Emmanuelle Moreau, a spokeswoman for the I.O.C. “We had been given some more information and thought that this information was concerning enough to go to the Chinese gymnastic federation and have a thorough discussion about it.”

If the online sports registration lists in China are accurate, this would render half the team — He Kexin, Yang Yilin, Jiang Yuyuan — under age and therefore ineligible to compete. The F.I.G., however, had deemed those gymnasts as eligible and that the ages on their passports were correct.

The Chinese women won the team gold among six total medals at the Beijing Games. He Kexin also won the gold in the uneven bars, making her a double gold medalist.

It is unclear at present what new information, if any has led to this latest move by the I.O.C., three days after the gymnastics competition ended.

Tags: beijing olympics, China, gymnastics