International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach has expressed his “full confidence” in the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) after 23 Chinese swimmers were cleared to compete in the Tokyo Olympics, despite testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine (TMZ) during a training camp seven months prior to the 2020 Games.
WADA stated that it could not refute the claim from the China Anti-Doping Agency (Chinada) that the substance was ingested unintentionally.
WADA has initiated an independent review to examine how the case was managed.
Bach said he and the IOC had “full confidence in Wada and that Wada have followed their regulations”.
He said that if the swimmers were cleared, they would be free to compete at this summer’s Olympics in Paris.
“If the procedures are followed, there is no reason for them not to be there,” he told news agency AFP.
On Friday Chinada said it would “actively co-operate” with Wada’s audit.
United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) chief executive Travis Tygart said Wada and Chinada had “swept these positives under the carpet”.
Wada responded by saying those claims were “completely false and defamatory” and had been referred to lawyers.
Palestinian athletes to be invited to Olympics
Bach mentioned that he anticipates “six to eight” Palestinian athletes will participate in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
While qualification for some sports is still pending, Bach noted that some Palestinian athletes would receive invitations to compete even if they do not meet the qualification criteria.
“We have made the clear commitment that even if no athlete would qualify on the field of play, then the NOC (National Olympic Committee) of Palestine would benefit from invitations,” Bach said.
The conflict in Gaza escalated when Hamas-led gunmen launched a significant attack on southern Israel on October 7, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people, predominantly civilians, and the abduction of 253 others to Gaza.
Since that attack, the health ministry in Gaza, which is run by Hamas, reports that at least 34,356 people, mostly children and women, have been killed.
The United Nations has issued warnings about a potential humanitarian disaster, and there have been accusations that Israel is restricting the flow of aid to civilians by land.
During the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, five Palestinian athletes participated.
“From day one, we expressed how horrified we were, first on 7 October and then about the war and its horrifying consequences,” Bach said.
“We have always been very clear, as we have been with the Russian invasion in Ukraine.”