Reimagining History and Solidarity: Nationalist Discourse in Chinese Self-Media’s Coverage of the Belarusian Champion’s Olympic Triumph

Barring Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing under their national flags in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war, the introduction of the Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN) status at the 2024 Paris Olympics stands as one of the most visible manifestations of geopolitics reshaping the boundaries of international sport. This study examines how Chinese self-media utilized nationalist discursive strategies in their coverage of Belarusian gymnast Ivan Litvinovich’s gold medal victory at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he competed under the AIN status. Through a Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (MCDA) of 67 videos and 345 articles across major Chinese platforms, this research identifies three dominant strategies: historical resonance, familial metaphors, and in-group/out-group distinctions. By incorporating text, visuals, audio, and user comments, the study expands the scope of MCDA and underscores how self-media blend emotive storytelling with nationalist messaging. The findings reveal how digital platforms commodify nationalism and actively co-construct political ideology, offering new insights into the affective and symbolic mechanisms underpinning China’s digital nationalism and its foreign policy narratives.