The controversy surrounding the age of China’s women’s gymnastic gold medallists reopened in Beijing on Friday when the sport’s governing body requested more evidence to prove that they were old enough to compete.

The move by the International Gymnastics Federation follows a request by Olympic officials to consider fresh evidence that He Kexin, part of the China squad that won the team gold who also won gold on the asymmetric bars, is 14 years old rather than 16.