‘Hypocritical double standards’: Australia’s response to Shayna Jack slammed

Australian swimming star Shayna Jack’s career is hanging in the balance. But some say there’s a major double standard we're all ignoring.

While Australian swimming star Shayna Jack’s career hangs in the balance, some of her supporters have been accused of hypocrisy.

With the latest doping scandal dominating headlines this week, many news.com.au readers feel a double standard appears when our nation’s own sporting heroes are in the spotlight for the wrong reasons.

Readers took to news.com.au’s comments section to vent, comparing the public’s reaction to Jack to that of Mack Horton’s protest against Chinese swimmer Sun Yang.

“I am a proud Australian but find the hypocritical double standards of many of our countrymen uncomfortable at best and dangerous at worst,” wrote news.com.au commenter Shane. “Our protests will carry more weight if we save them for issues on which we have a strong moral position.”

“Doping and cheating is serious but we need to set aside our bias towards different people and let the process take its course,” added Eric.

Commenter Nefarius Purpus sparked a heated discussion after questioning whether those who criticised Sun would suggest the same treatment for Jack.

“Would you now support a LIFE BAN for Shayna as indeed you all so self righteously demanded for Sun Yang...?” the commenter asked.

The question divided readers. Scott stressed there was an important difference between the two cases — Sun was competing with an unresolved doping issue still ongoing, while Jack wasn’t. “Jack isn’t competing, because she has an unresolved doping issue over her head,” he said. “Yang has an unresolved doping issue over his head (WADA taking it to CAS), but is competing.”

Commenter Michael added: “Yang’s second case has been resolved by an independent tribunal. That resolution is now being appealed, with the onus of proof now falling on WADA. This is not an unresolved matter- it is an appealed matter. Not simply semantics, but actually legal process.”

Another reader argued that Horton didn’t test positive, and can therefore protest whoever he likes, but this also debate, with Nefarius Purpus saying this made Horton look like a “petulant sook”.

“Yes...just NOT at the podium. There are proper avenues for him to register a protest but standing down at the podium after he LOST to Sun Yang,” they said.

“He didn’t care how it made HIM look, it’s about the bigger picture of clean sport,” fired back SC. “He’s said a million times his stance and nothing has happened so in his mind (and many others) he did have to make a protest (in a ‘non formal’ avenue) to be heard.”

Jack has continued to plead her innocence and has previously stated she did not know she ingested the drug. The swimmer has suggested that she took a tainted supplement and that is how Ligandrol came to be in her system.

Do you think it’s hypocritical for Aussies to stand by Shayna Jack and not Sun Yang? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Originally published as ‘Hypocritical double standards’: Australia’s response to Shayna Jack slammed