“It’s unacceptable to beat test tubes”: Olympic swimming champion Sun Yang has been suspended for eight years

The Lausanne Sports Court of Arbitration (CAS) found three-time Olympic swimming champion and 11-time world champion Sun Yang guilty of violating anti-doping rules. He received an eight-year suspension for interfering with the doping test procedure.

“The athlete could not prove that he had good reason for destroying test tubes with his blood samples and refusing to pass the test, which he explained was the non-compliance of the sampling protocol with the International Standard for Testing and Investigations. According to the court, it is one thing to question the authority of the anti-doping service staff after providing blood samples and transferring intact samples to the appropriate doping control authorities for storage. It’s completely different - after lengthy discussions and many warnings regarding the potential consequences, take actions that will destroy the test tubes with doping samples, thereby eliminating any possibility of checking the sample at a later stage, ”the CAS statement said.

The plaintiff in court was the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which demanded the suspension of Sun Yang for a term of two to eight years. Taking into account the doping past of the Chinese swimmer, who served a three-month suspension for the use of trimetazidine in 2014, the arbitration court chose the worst case scenario for him. In this case, the athlete will not be stripped of any of his titles, including two gold medals of the 2019 World Cup.

WADA representatives welcomed the CAS decision, as, in their opinion, "justice has been restored." At the same time, the athlete himself did not want to admit his guilt. He stated that he was currently shocked and indignant, and also announced that he intended to uphold his innocence in the Swiss Federal Court.

“This is unfair. I firmly believe in my innocence. I’ll certainly appeal to more people to find out the truth, ”Xinhua quoted Sun Yang as saying.

Sun Yang is one of the most successful Chinese athletes, and therefore is very popular in his homeland. The CAS verdict disappointed many local fans, and some of them even rushed to accuse the international sports authorities of conspiracy. The swimmer also expressed regret and support for the China Swimming Association and the National Olympic Committee.

The scandal that made Sun Yang one of the most controversial figures of modern swimming occurred in September 2018, although its details became known only a few months later. Then WADA employees came to his home to conduct an out-of-competition testing procedure. The athlete drew attention to the fact that the protocol was filled out incorrectly - the names were listed in one place, although according to the rules everyone had to have their own certificate.

After a verbal skirmish, doping officers still received blood samples. However, then the unexpected came. The guards took the test tubes and smashed them with a hammer, while the athlete himself broke the test report. He accused the agency of unprofessionalism and, according to some reports, even threatened them.

The International Federation of Water Sports (FINA) chose to turn a blind eye to what happened, and the three-time Olympic champion did not suffer any punishment for his trick. However, WADA had a different opinion on this matter, and last fall a corresponding application was submitted to CAS. It is interesting that the swimmer was so sure of his innocence that he demanded that the first public hearing be held in 35 years.

Doping scandals negatively affected the image of Sun Yang in the eyes of rivals. At the 2019 World Cup, Australian Mack Horton refused to climb the podium and shake his hand after a 400m freestyle.

Then Duncan Scott followed suit. This angered the Chinese so much that a fight broke out between the rivals. Television cameras captured the moment when Sun Yang, leaving the catwalk, said to the British, “You are a loser, and I am a winner.”

This episode was remembered by the 11-time world champion after the CAS verdict. In addition, many paid tribute to Horton, who repeatedly stated that the anti-doping rule violator had no place next to pure athletes.

Who's the loser now .... # SunYangpic.twitter.com / puFgPeXqJf

The news of the disqualification was positively received by many colleagues of the swimmer, including the four-time world champion Chad le Clos, as well as the silver medalist of London 2012 Eugene Korotyshkin. According to the Russian, cheating by athletes should be punished with all the severity of the anti-doping law.

“Dirty work was done, and in the end a fair decision was made. Still, when a person smashes test tubes with a hammer and ignores doping tests, this is all inadmissible. A lot of things are forgiven, but this is not. Athletes are often impulsive, but to beat test tubes and to beat women is unacceptable in principle. WADA worked out its stage well here, ”RIA Novosti quoted Kortyshkin as saying.

Scott did not stand aside.

“I respect and fully support the decision that CAS announced this morning. I am for pure sport and ensuring equal conditions for all athletes, and I believe that the Court of Arbitration for Sport and WADA will uphold these values, ”the British quoted CNN as saying.