Sun Yang reportedly breaches ban after being invited to Chinese national camp
Disgraced Chinese swimmer Sun Yang’s eight-year ban could be doubled following reports he ignored one of the most basic and non-negotiable elements of his existing punishment.
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Disgraced Chinese swimmer Sun Yang could be in more hot water if he’s found to have flouted the rules again with world anti-doping officials investigating reports he was asked to train with the national team for the Tokyo Olympics in an apparent breach of his doping ban.
Currently suspended for eight years for a second brazen doping offence, Sun’s sanction could be doubled to 16 years if authorities find he’s ignored one of the most basic and non-negotiable elements of his existing punishment.
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Part of the penalty for anyone busted for doping is that not only are they banned from competing but they’re also prevented from training with their national teams or even their clubs.
While Sun’s lawyers have said he plans to appeal his ban, the only way he can train while he’s banned is if he does it in complete isolation, away from an accredited facility and without the support of an accredited coach.
The rule is so well known that the Chinese can’t blame dodgy translators for not explaining it properly.
That’s why everyone in the sport was so shocked when Chinese media let it slip that the convicted cheat had been invited to join the national team for a three-month training camp starting this month.
Beijing Youth Daily confirm that Sun Yang is still in China's Olympic swimming squad for delayed Tokyo 2020. Document shows he is in the Zhejiang swimmers called up for national team training from April to June. pic.twitter.com/LU1IZsDqPD
— Jonathan White (@jmawhite) April 23, 2020
China Swimming Association announced the call-up of Sun Yang into the national swimming team for the Tokyo Olympics has been revoked. The 8-year suspension has come into force though Sun Yang is trying to appeal. It means Sun Yang is not in China's plan for the Tokyo Olympics. pic.twitter.com/PPem1pMLsP
— Titan Sports Plus (@titan_plus) April 23, 2020
That would constitute a clear breach of the rules – which under the World Anti-Doping Agency’s strict code normally means a doubling of the existing penalty, eight years in Sun’s case.
The penalties are so severe that anyone who assists a banned competitor from training – whether it be a coach, a teammate or a federation – could also be sanctioned, so it wasn’t a surprise when the Chinese performed a quick backflip and cancelled the invitation.
“Based on the WADA Code, Sun Yang has been banned from competition after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) made the decision. That won’t change during Sun Yang’s appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal against the CAS decision. The previous No.49 document is therefore invalid,” the Chinese Swimming Association said in a statement.
Even so, WADA wants to find out exactly what’s going on in China, telling The Saturday Telegraph: “When an athlete has been declared ineligible, the terms of Article 10.12.1 of the World Anti-Doping Code apply. We are following up with the relevant authorities to establish the facts in this matter.”
Sun’s disregard for ignoring rules is infamous.
That’s what got him the eight-year ban in the first place when he refused to follow the orders of the independent officers who were sent to his home to carry out a random test that ended with his samples being destroyed.
That’s also why WADA repeatedly warned him not to intimidate witnesses before his case hearing with the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland last year.
And it’s why the CAS report into his ban was so scathing of his behaviour, with the arbitrators specifically mentioning how he ignored court protocol by calling one of his friends to join him at the witness stand and act as his translator – without asking the judges for permission.
Britain’s James Guy, a two-time Olympic silver medallist, said he was “shocked” and “speechless” over the reports that Sun was named in the training squad.
“They’ve been to CAS, he’s been given a ban and that’s it. It’s over,” he said, according to Swimming World