Shanghai Opener To World Cup A Reminder Of China's Turbulent Year
It’s been quite a year for Chinese swimming, what with a record number of positives in one season making public domain and confirmation that some of them had returned positives in their youth back 7-8 years ago. Many were in action today, none of the turbulence a barrier to hosting a World Cup
Shanghai got the first round of the World Aquatics Cup off to a traditional start in the short-course 25m pool as the host nation filled the top five slots in the opening women’s 400m freestyle, third place a reminder of the pervasive nature of the latest China doping crisis.
The day of a global swim series that truly reflects the best of the best going head to head a hope not a reality. The national race was way ahead of the international challenge as Liu Yaxin clocked 3:58.45 for the win, Li Bingjie took second in 4:00.18 well down on her world-record pace of 3:51.30 from 2022 and Tang Muhan* third in 4:00.40.
They were followed by two teammates, all five swimming under “CHN”, not the “CLB” for club in a cup series that allows domestic program participation. Three swimmers from Taipei completed the final.
Tang drew the eye. Back in October 2022 as Li prepared to set a new standard at another home meet, in Beijing, Tang popped off for a burger with a teammate and the fast food was then blamed for a positive doping test for which both swimmers were penalised without their cases being divulged to the world with full transparency.
Tests taken days after the sneaky meal out ended up showing traces of methandienone (also known as Dianabol, or D-bol), a common cause of steroid positives that have resulted in heavy suspensions for many athletes around the world. The details:
Tang raced on to the podium in the 4x200m free at the Paris 2024 Olympics in a week of high controversy over the 23 Chinese swimmers named in a Chinada report as having tested positive for the banned heart booster trimetazidine (TMZ) in January 2021 (seven years after the same substance landed Sun Yang* the first of his two anti-doping penalties). Many were in action in Shanghai today.
Results in full. Our report on the China team's efforts at home below.
