Why Has Chinese Swimmer Sun Yang Been Banned?

Swimming world and olympic champion Sun Yang has been banned from competing for eight years for allegedly destroying blood samples following a doping test at his home in 2018.

On Friday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) appeal against a decision by FINA—the international swimming federation—to clear the Chinese athlete of any wrongdoing.

"The CAS Panel unanimously determined, to its comfortable satisfaction, that the Athlete violated Article 2.5 Fina DC (Tampering with any part of Doping Control)," the verdict read.

"The Panel found that the personnel in charge of the doping control complied with all applicable requirements as set out in the International Standard for Testing and Investigations (ISTI)."

In 2018, a report from The Sunday Times alleged Sun used a hammer to smash the vials containing his blood samples following a doping test at his home in September of the same year.

Sun, who was suspended for three months in 2014 for a separate offense, his mother and his entourage reportedly interfered with FINA's testing team as they believed the doctors were not properly accredited.

Swimming's governing body launched an investigation into the incident, which concluded in January last year exonerating Sun after it found him not guilty of breaching the anti-doping protocol.

WADA subsequently appealed the verdict, insisting the 28-year-old's actions were deserving of a ban instead. In its verdict, CAS suggested that even had Sun's concerns over the accreditation of the testing team been justified, his actions could not be excused.

"It is one thing, having provided a blood sample, to question the accreditation of the testing personnel while keeping the intact samples in the possession of the testing authorities," the statement read.

"It is quite another thing, after lengthy exchanges and warnings as to the consequences, to act in such a way that results in destroying the sample containers, thereby eliminating any chance of testing the sample at a later stage."

WADA praised the ruling, describing it as a major milestone in the fight against doping.

"WADA decided to appeal the original FINA ruling having carefully reviewed it and having concluded that there were a number of points that seemed to be incorrect under the Code," said the agency's director general Olivier Niggli. "Today's CAS ruling confirms those concerns and is a significant result."

Shortly after the publication of the verdict, Sun protested his innocence and stated he would appeal the decision. "This is unfair. I firmly believe in my innocence," he was quoted as saying by People's Daily, China's largest newspaper.

If the ban is confirmed, it will prevent Sun from defending his 200 meter freestyle title at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, this summer and it will effectively end Sun's career.

The Chinese athlete won the gold medal in the 200m freestyle at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, to which he added a silver medal in the 400m freestyle. Four years earlier at the London Olympics, he won gold in both the 400m and 1,500m freestyle and the silver medal in the 200m freestyle.

Sun has reigned supreme across different distances, winning the gold medal in the 400m in each of the last five editions of the World Aquatics Championships and finishing first in the 200m in the last three editions.

He won his 10th and 11th world titles at the World Aquatics Championships in South Korea in July last year, when he made the headlines for a heated exchange with Australia's Mack Horton, who finished second in the 400m freestyle.

Horton, who had previously accused Sun of being a "drug cheat," then refused to shake hands with the Chinese swimmer, share the podium presentation or pose for photos with him.

He did, however, shake hands and pose for a picture alongside Italy's Gabriele Detti, who finished third in the race.

Sun suggested Horton's reaction showed a lack of respect to China, but the Australian refuted the allegations.

"I just won't share a podium with someone that behaves in the way that he [Sun] has," he said. "I don't think I need to say anything. His actions and how it has been handled speaks louder than anything I could say."