Chinese swimmer Sun Yang ordered to pay the costs for doping retrial

A request from banned Chinese swimmer Sun Yang has been knocked back in his bid for a reprieve in time for the Tokyo Olympics.

Sun Yang has to foot the bill for his doping retrial. Picture: AFP

Sun Yang has suffered a $54,000 setback ahead of his retrial to decide whether he can be allowed to line up against Australia’s defending champion Mack Horton at this year’s Tokyo Olympics after the hot-headed Chinese swimmer was ordered to foot the bill for his last appeal.

Banned for eight years after being found guilty of tampering with his own doping samples before they could be tested for drugs in late 2018, Sun was given a reprieve in January when the Swiss Federal Supreme Court agreed to send his case back to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after one of the judges was accused of anti-Chinese bias.

Three arbitrators unanimously found Sun guilty of breaking the rules but his lawyers lodged an appeal months later when they spotted social media comments by Judge Franco Frattini castigating the Chinese practice of slaughtering dogs for meat consumption.

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The Swiss Federal Supreme Court agreed that the comments were inappropriate so ordered Sun’s case to be re-trialled by the CAS but in a separate ruling late on Thursday night, they rejected Sun’s request that the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and swimming’s governing body FINA would have to split the bill.

Instead, Sun was told he would have to pay the costs, totalling 39,000 Swiss Francs (A$54,000) – though that is just a fraction of what the total case has cost.

In its 2019 annual report, WADA revealed its eye-watering bill for the case was $830,000 – but that does not cover Sun’s own fees after he horde a high-powered legal team to try and save his career.

Sun Yang has to foot the bill for his doping retrial. Picture: AAP

The date for Sun’s retrial has not been revealed yet but WADA is pushing for it to be heard in time so that the decision can be announced before the Tokyo Olympics open on July 23.

If the case is not decided, or Sun is cleared, that would set the scene for a rematch against Horton, who was hailed as a hero when he refused to join Sun on the podium at the 2019 world championships.

Subjected to death threats to him and his family, snubbed by gutless sponsors frightened of alienating Chinese consumers and reprimanded by FINA’s out-of-touch administrators, Horton’s long running crusade for clean sport will be put to the ultimate test if they race each other in the Japanese capital.

Horton beat Sun for the gold in the 400 metres freestyle at the 2016 Rio Olympics but finished second to his arch rival at the world titles, prompting complaints about why he was allowed to race when his case was still pending at the time.

Horton was allowed to keep his silver medal after making a silent protest but has been warned he could face expulsion if he does it again in Tokyo.