By Diana Renee Aug 13, 2008, 12:03 GMT
Beijing - The Italian saying 'traduttore, traditore' (meaning that all translators are traitors) seems more accurate than ever in the press conferences at the Beijing Olympics.
Both reporters' questions and the answers to them are translated in at least two stages: first to Chinese, and then to English. If the person interviewed speaks French - another of the official languages of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) - there is an extra stage.
The first consequence of this process is that it takes time, which leads many interviews to be interrupted after the second or third question.
The second is more serious: a lot of what is said gets lost in translation, and sometimes there are dramatic changes in its meaning.
During a press conference of Brazilian-born beach volleyball players Renato Gomes and Jorge Terceiro, who are playing for Georgia in Beijing, a Japanese reporter asked them how they were affected by the war in the Caucasus.
'I just found out this morning, and I am very sad about events in my country and very worried about my family who is there,' Terceiro replied, according to the English translation.
What the Chinese translator did not know was that Terceiro lives in the Brazilian city of Joao Pessoa, that he only visited Georgia three times in the past four years and that he has no family or friends in the Caucasian country.
With the help of a Brazilian colleague, the Japanese reporter finally discovered what Terceiro had actually said.
'We found out about the war two days ago and we are very sad for our teammates, who are very worried because their families are there.'
The immediate problem was solved, but the Japanese reporter's confidence in the system had been dealt an understandably fatal blow.
'I was lucky to get help in this case, but I wonder how many wrong quotes I must have published inadvertently.'
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