A court based in Switzerland has ruled that Chinese Olympian Sun Yang did not cooperate with anti-doping officials during the collection of blood samples. As a result, he has been banned from the sport for eight years.
Sun Yang made history as the first Chinese male swimmer to secure a gold medal at the Olympics. He also set a record by winning gold in freestyle events ranging from 200 to 1,500 meters at both the Olympics and World Championships.
Concerns about his lack of cooperation with FINA, the governing body for swimming, were first raised in September 2018. An incident occurred where a security guard tampered with the blood sample container at the request of Sun Yang’s mother. FINA determined that proper procedures were not followed by the officials, and Sun Yang was not adequately informed about the need to provide samples. Consequently, he was let off with a warning.
Critics questioned whether FINA was attempting to shield one of its star athletes from repercussions.
The World Anti-Doping Agency challenged FINA’s decision and escalated the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which concluded that Sun Yang could not offer a justifiable explanation for his actions.
The 28-year-old swimmer had previously served a three-month suspension in 2014 for testing positive for banned substances. CAS reasoned that an eight-year ban aligns with FINA’s policy for second-time violations.
Sun Yang has been a polarizing figure in the sport, as evidenced by incidents where both Duncan Scott and Mack Horton refused to stand on the podium with him, resulting in warning letters from FINA.
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