The Guardian-Chinese swimmers won Olympic golds after testing positive for banned drug
April 20, 2024 4 min 761 words
这篇报道主要内容是：23 名中国游泳运动员在 2021 年东京奥运会前被检测出禁药 TMZ 阳性，但在世界反兴奋剂机构 Wada 接受中国方面的厨房污染解释后，被允许参赛。这一事件引发了反兴奋剂界人士对 Wada 处理方式的批评和质疑。 评论：这篇报道有几个值得商榷之处。首先，它忽略了中国反兴奋剂机构 Chinada 的调查报告，该报告提供了 TMZ 在厨房被检测出的证据，并结合游泳运动员尿样中 TMZ 浓度较低的情况，得出了“不可能故意服药”的结论。其次，报道中提到的美国反兴奋剂机构负责人 Tygart 和世界反兴奋剂机构前总干事 Howman 的批评，带有明显的偏见和情绪化，他们没有提供实质性的证据来反驳中国方面的调查结果，而只是基于猜测和怀疑。此外，报道中也提到世界反兴奋剂机构高级官员奥利维尔鲁宾 Olivier Rubin 为该机构的处理方式辩护，承认在评估中国方面提出的污染情况时，寻求了 TMZ 制造商提供药物代谢信息，最终认为“没有任何具体依据可以质疑所声称的污染”。这篇报道有失客观公正，在证据不足的情况下，以偏概全，过度强调批评的声音，有抹黑中国运动员和反兴奋剂机构之嫌。
Twenty-three Chinese swimmers tested positive for the banned drug TMZ months before the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, it has emerged. However, they were cleared to compete at the Games after the World Anti-Doping Agency accepted an explanation from the Chinese authorities that the kitchen at their hotel was contaminated.
The story, which has only come to light following a joint investigation by the German TV channel ARD and the New York Times, has led to widespread criticism of Wada from senior figures in anti-doping, with one calling the case “shocking” and another a “devastating stab in the back to clean athletes”.
Several of the Chinese swimmers went on to win medals in Tokyo – including three golds. Many of them, including the two-time gold medalist Zhang Yufei, are expected to challenge again at the Paris Olympics this summer.
Both ARD and the New York Times said they had seen a 61-page investigative report from the Chinese anti-doping agency, Chinada, to Wada in 2021, which said that it had found trace elements of TMZ in the extractor fan, on spice containers and in the drain of a hotel kitchen in Shijiazhuang, where the swimmers had been staying.
Chinada also pointed to low concentrations of TMZ, a heart drug which improves performance, in the urine samples of the swimmers as grounds to conclude intentional doping was “impossible”. However, according to the New York Times, it did not explain how a prescription drug available only in pill form had contaminated the kitchen.
In an email to the Observer, Wada confirmed that it had not appealed against the decision to clear the Chinese swimmers after reviewing the evidence. It said that it had not been possible for its scientists or investigators to conduct enquiries on the ground in China “given the extreme restrictions in place” due to a Covid-related lockdown.
“Wada ultimately concluded that it was not in a position to disprove the possibility that contamination was the source of TMZ and it was compatible with the analytical data in the file,” it said in a statement.
“Wada also concluded that, given the specific circumstances of the asserted contamination, the athletes would be held to have no fault or negligence. As such, and based on the advice of external counsel, Wada considered that an appeal was not warranted.”
World Aquatics, which is in charge of global swimming, also said it was confident the positive tests were handled “diligently and professionally”.
However, it has emerged that both the Independent Testing Agency and the US Anti-Doping Agency contacted Wada to express their concerns about the way the Chinese test results were reported.
ARD also said it had spoken to a whistleblower in China who told them: “The whole story about contamination is a fairy tale to me. None of the officials’ explanations are credible.” Meanwhile the New York Times said it had spoken to five independent anti-doping experts who found the findings of the Chinese investigation “implausible”.
The head of US Anti-Doping, Travis Tygart, who said he had provided Wada with multiple allegations of doping in Chinese swimming since 2020, was also critical of how the case had been handled. “This appears to be a devastating stab in the back of clean athletes and a deep betrayal of all the athletes who compete fairly and follow the rules,” he said.
Meanwhile David Howman, a former director general of Wada who now heads the Athletics Integrity Unit, said the case was “shocking”. He added: “What it would say to me immediately is that perhaps there was some form of programme in this sport to ‘prepare’ swimmers for the Tokyo Olympics.
“My concern is intense. You want the public to have confidence in your regulator. If you lose that confidence, then the reputation of the regulator starts going down the gurgler. And if that were to occur, that would be a tragedy for Wada.”
However Olivier Rubin, Wada’s senior science and medicine director, insisted that the case had been thoroughly reviewed in June and July of 2021. “Indeed, we even sought pharmacokinetic and metabolism information from the manufacturer of TMZ in assessing the plausibility of the contamination scenario that was presented to Wada,” he said. “Ultimately, we concluded that there was no concrete basis to challenge the asserted contamination.”
Chinada and the Chinese Swimming Association did not immediately respond to requests for comment.