Three Chinese swimmers, including two 2021 Olympic gold medalists and a current world record holder, tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol in 2016 and 2017, according to a report by the New York Times. The swimmers’ positive tests were not made public at the time, and Chinese authorities argued that the athletes had ingested the substance inadvertently through contaminated meat. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) acknowledged that the clenbuterol levels detected in the swimmers’ samples were below the minimum reporting level currently used by the agency. However, the revelations have raised concerns about the handling of doping cases by WADA and the prevalence of clenbuterol contamination in meat.
The latest revelations come after the sporting world was rocked by reports in April that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ), a prescription heart drug, ahead of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Chinese authorities said the athletes had ingested the substance unwittingly through contaminated food, but the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) accused WADA and China’s anti-doping body of covering up the positives. WADA denied these accusations, but the fresh revelations reported by the New York Times have brought more criticism from USADA and Global Athlete, the body that works on behalf of athletes worldwide.
USADA chief executive Travis Tygart said in a statement that the New York Times report was “unbelievable” and that “athletes from around the world were held accountable to the rules in effect at the time but now the world learns that WADA allowed special treatment for a chosen few.”” Global Athlete chief Rob Koehler said that athletes had “zero confidence” in WADA and World Aquatics. “Transparency is needed more than ever, without transparency the anti-doping movement will crumble and athletes will never feel they have a level playing field,” Koehler said.
