CChina’s most decorated swimmer has made a triumphant return to the pool after serving a controversial four-year ban for doping.hina’s most decorated swimmer has made a triumphant return to the pool after serving a controversial four-year ban for doping.
Sun Yang claimed gold in the men’s 400m freestyle at the National Summer Swimming Championships in Hefei, where he later became emotional while speaking to reporters.
Sun was suspended by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in 2020 for refusing to provide samples to testers who had come to his home.
Previously condemned by many in China as a drugs cheat, his return has now been celebrated in state media.
This comeback follows a highly publicized anti-doping controversy at the Paris Olympics this summer, where China alleged its athletes were being unfairly targeted.
In a tearful interview at the poolside, the 32-year-old Sun expressed gratitude to those who supported him during his journey back to competition.
“This is really because of the reliance and support from my family — that’s what’s kept me going until today”, he told the South China Morning Post.
In 2012, Sun Yang became China’s first-ever male swimmer to win Olympic gold, triumphing in the 400m and 1,500m freestyle events at the London Games. Four years later, he added another gold medal to his collection by winning the 200m freestyle at the Rio Olympics.
However, his career took a dramatic turn in 2018 when anti-doping officials visited his home for an out-of-competition test.
Sun and his team argued that the testers lacked proper accreditation and refused to cooperate. In a startling incident, a member of Sun’s entourage reportedly smashed a vial of his blood with a hammer to prevent the testers from leaving with the sample.
Sun, who had previously served a three-month suspension in 2014 for using the banned substance Trimetazidine (TMZ), denied any wrongdoing. Initially, swimming’s governing body, FINA, cleared him of any violations.
However, two years later, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned that decision, ruling that Sun had indeed refused to cooperate with the sample testers. He was handed an eight-year ban, which was later reduced to four years and three months on appeal.
Since he had never actually tested positive for any banned substances, Sun was allowed to retain all of his medals.
His victory on Sunday was widely celebrated in Chinese state media, with social media posts receiving an outpouring of positive comments.
“Brother Sun, don’t cry. The past four years haven’t been easy. You’re amazing,” said one user on Weibo.
Another said: “Congratulations to Sun Yang. Four years and three months of determination and perseverance have all been worth it and have led to this moment. Looking forward to Los Angeles.”
Chinese swimmers have been in the spotlight since the Paris Olympics after a slew of doping allegations, followed by contentious US claims that the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) was covering it up.
Chinese swimmers headed to Paris were drug-tested twice as much as some other nations, which, in turn, has fuelled accusations of a conspiracy to disrupt their performance.
At the time, the state-run Global Times blamed Western powers for “abusing doping tests to disrupt [the] Chinese swimming team”, while breaststroke champion Qin Haiyang accused opposing teams of using underhand “tricks” to disrupt Chinese competitors.
In his long-awaited return, Sun represented his home province of Zhejiang – but it is unclear whether he will be allowed to represent China on the international stage.
According to the country’s anti-doping regulations, athletes who have been banned for more than one year are not eligible to be selected for the national team.
Sun insists he will “go all out” to compete for a spot in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles – although his performance will need to drastically improve.
His race on Sunday featured no competitors who swam in the Paris Olympics and his time was nearly nine seconds slower than his previous best, which he clocked in London in 2012.
“I could have done better. Four years away from competition and without intensive training, I do feel rusty in controlling the tempo, and I need more competitions,” he told state-run outlet China Daily.
“But it’s a good start for my comeback, and I’m happy with this result,” he added.