Fang Zheng, who lost both during the student protests at Tiananmen Square in 1989, has called for a boycott of Beijing 2022 ©Wikipedia

A former student whose legs were amputated following injuries sustained during the 1989 crackdown on protesters in Tiananmen Square has called for an international boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing. 

Fang Zheng was a 22-year-old university student at the time of the attack on demonstrators in the Chinese capital on June 4 in 1989. 

Both of his legs were mangled and later amputated after he was crushed and dragged 30 feet by a tank while attempting to help another demonstrator out of the square.

It came in protests where the civilian death toll has ranged from 180 to 10,454.

According to Slate.com, Fang  had been a promising sprinter with Olympic ambitions before the incident.

He later won two discus gold medals at the All-China Disabled Athletic Games in Guangzhou in 1992 but blamed politics after he was blocked from competing internationally in 1994.

Fang, now a resident in the United States, claimed that, despite promises, the 2008 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing did little to change the situation regarding human rights in China.

"There has been a ‘selective forgetting’ of this event [at Tiananmen Square]," he told Slate.com.

"Right now the memories of the Chinese people have been influenced by the authorities, which do not allow any open discussion.

"Before the Summer Olympic Games, people were hoping that China would finally join the family of the world."

Student protests inTiananmen Square in 1989 were put down forcibly by the Chinese Government ©Wikipedia
Student protests inTiananmen Square in 1989 were put down forcibly by the Chinese Government ©Wikipedia

Fang added: "The whole world was fooled by China. 

"Nothing changed in terms of human rights abuses. 

"After the Games, the persecution of dissidents didn’t relent.

"The Chinese Government only exerted more pressure."

Fang claimed that the "international community should respond" and, pointing to ongoing allegations of dissent in China as well as the recent removal of term limits for President Xi Jinping.

He said that, if the situation does not improve, "other countries should boycott".

Events in China have often been a forum for political dissent.

The build-up to Beijing 2008 was dominated with protests by Tibetan rights group and a group of free Tibet protesters broke into the Lausanne Palace hotel when the city was showcasing its successful 2022 bid in 2015.

The International Olympic Committee insists sport can "build bridges" and there appears little chance of much support for a boycott.