In Tiananmen of Games, No Trace of '89 Massacre

Fireworks set off as part of the Games' Opening Ceremonies illuminated the sky above paramilitary police stationed in a refurbished Tiananmen Square. (By Nick Laham -- Getty Images)

"I never felt I sacrificed very much," Liu said. "I am always trying to find justice for the people who died. Sometimes that means I am detained in a small prison. Sometimes I live in a bigger prison, which is the society of current China."

Fang Zheng lives his life in a wheelchair, a double amputee whose legs were crushed by a tank as he tried to escape that night. It wasn't just the tank treads that changed his life; it was also the "cleanup campaign" launched by his university that required each participant in the protest to write a personal account.

"I wrote about the tank rolling over me," Fang said. "The school leaders asked me not to write about that. They wanted me to change it to a car accident or something. I didn't agree. I wanted to be responsible for the truth."

After a lengthy physical rehabilitation, Fang trained as a discus and javelin thrower. He won two gold medals in an all-China competition in 1992. When he applied to compete in an international event to be held in Beijing in 1994, the Chinese Disabled Persons' Federation made him promise not to discuss his injury with other athletes or foreign journalists. He also had to promise not to contact any friends in Beijing, since they might have been with him in Tiananmen.

Fang agreed to all the conditions, but the government excluded him anyway. "I never gave up my sports dream, but in 1994, my dream was broken," said Fang, now 41.

"The government wants to convey a message to show the world a prosperous and emerging China," Fang said. "It's not wrong. But the prosperity cannot hide some problems."

Researchers Liu Songjie, Zhang Jie and Crissie Ding contributed to this report.