China's gold medal gymnasts were old enough to compete in the Beijing Olympics, the sport's governing body said yesterday, though it still had questions about the team that competed at the 2000 Sydney Games.

Two members of that squad — Dong Fangxiao and Yang Yun — remain under scrutiny.

The International Gymnastics Federation said in a statement that it "does not consider the explanations and evidence provided to date in regards to these athletes as satisfactory."

Dong got a Beijing Olympics credential with documents that suggest she was only 14 in 2000, said Andre Gueisbuhler, secretary general of the FIG. Her blog also indicates she was underage in Sydney.

Yang, who also won a bronze medal on the uneven bars in 2000, said in a June 2007 interview that aired on state broadcaster China Central Television that she was 14 in Sydney. Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year to compete.

"I would hope that the whole world in sport realizes that the FIG is serious about these rules and the ethics and moral questions," Gueisbuhler said.

Calls to Yang and Dong's mobile phones rang unanswered yesterday, a national holiday, as did phone calls to the Chinese gymnastics team's media officers.

"We are satisfied with the information provided by FIG, and we now consider the (2008) matter closed," said Emmanuelle Moreau, spokeswoman for the International Olympic Committee.