Falun Gong followers at a parade in Los Angeles, California. The Chinese skiers requested that a book about the religious practice be removed

A Norwegian library has rejected a request from visiting Chinese skiers to remove several titles including a book about a spiritual movement banned in their home country.

More than 40 Chinese cross-country skiers, accompanied by 15 coaches and managers, are in the Norwegian town of Meraker to train for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics as part of a collaborative training programme. Members of the delegation requested that the local library remove several books, including one about Falun Gong, which has been outlawed as a cult in China since 1999. The episode is the latest example of Beijing’s efforts to export its censorship laws overseas.

According to Norway Today, Anne Marken, the library manager, told a local newspaper that she had turned down the