SHENYANG - Zhuang Xiaoyan kept a gold beverage can as one of her most treasured things for 19 years before being told that her prize for winning the Olympic champion in 1992 was "fake gold".

Each of China's 18 Olympic champions in the Barcelona Games were awarded a "gold can" by the country's once biggest soft drink company Jianlibao Group, who had promised the can was made of "pure gold" and weighed 200 grams.

"I had always thought the gold can was the best proof for my professional career. It had given me a lot of confidence for my life during the past 19 years," Zhuang said.

Zhuang, who won the women's 72kg category judo in Barcelona, said that she used to store the "gold can" in a bank for three years, which cost her over 1,000 yuan every year (about $159).

The 42-year-old Zhuang, who retired in 1995, found that the can was fake gold two months ago when her twin daughters, now 16, raised suspicion that it was not like "pure gold" because some parts of the can were broken.

Zhuang then had the can tested only to be told that the can was fake gold and worth less than 100 yuan ($15.9).

The angry Zhuang contacted the company immediately but Jianlibao Group, China's biggest soft drink company in the 1980s and early 1990s, only told her that she can solve the problem through "legal procedures."

"I am very sad and angry," said Zhuang, who works as a teacher in the Liaoning Sports Institute. "It's not the problem about gold and money. It has witnessed my career and gave me a lot of beautiful memories for 19 years."

A source from the Legal Affairs Management of Jianlibao Group told Xinhua that Jianlibao had informed local police, adding that they will look into the "fake gold can" issue.

The source said that the people who were responsible for awarding the gold cans to the Olympic champions 19 years ago had all left Jianlibao Group.

Jianlibao Group, established in 1984, plunged into crisis in 2005, when poor management and stiff competition from international rivals like Coca-Cola and Pepsi led to a total debt of more than one billion yuan (about $121 million).

In February 2007, Zhang Hai, former Jianlibao president and CEO, was sentenced 15 years jail time for embezzling public funds.

Li Jingwei, the former group chairman, received a 15-year-old sentence on November 2, 2011.

Another Barcelona Olympic champion Gao Min, who won the women's 3m springboard, said that she does not care whether the can was made of pure gold or not.

"Mine has been kept by my parents. I always think it is just an honor for winning the Olympic champion," said Gao, who also won the event in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

But Gao said she might have it tested some day. "Probably I will ask my parents to have it tested. But before the result comes out, I will not say anything about it."