Source: Wikipedia
Judging by the statement she made for ABC Online (Australia) a cane was used to improve her performance. Well, she ended up winning a gold medal!
The first time I went to Korea was just such an experience. I was running with one of the younger girls and I was sort of helping her, and we were sort of at the back, 'cause she had an injury, and we were running around, and we got to the end last. And the coach said, "OK, get down in push-up position." And I thought, "Oh, no, push-ups." And then he had this big bamboo stick, thick with welts on it, and he just cracked it just over the bottom of our buttocks, on the top of our hamstring. And the pain - I've just never felt pain like that. So I got 10.
You know, they had this philosophy of, if they hit you, "I'll try and break the stick," you know, clench yourself so that you're always trying to compete against the stick, break the stick, run faster, run harder - all of those things.
