China’s anti-doping agency criticizes media

BEIJING: The Chinese Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA) criticized a media report for “distorting the fact and quoting the relevant case out of context” in newly flared-up contamination cases involving Chinese athletes.

CHINADA and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) provided detailed explanations following a New York Times report on Tuesday that implied a cover-up of the cases. Two swimmers, one shooter and one BMX rider tested positive for trace amounts of the prohibited substance, metandienone, in late 2022 and early 2023, in different locations and at different times. These athletes were immediately provisionally suspended until late 2023 when the investigation concluded.

“Evidence shows that the Adverse Analytical Findings ( AAFs) were caused by the athletes’ unknowing ingestion of metandienone-contaminated meat products while dining out,” CHINADA said in a statement Wednesday.

“As per relevant provisions in the CHINADA Anti-Doping Rules and the World Anti-Doping Code (the Code), CHINADA determined that the athletes involved bore no fault or negligence in the case and decided not to bring forward the AAFs as Anti-Doping -Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) against them,” said CHINADA in a statement on Wednesday.

“It is extremely unfair and unethical for the New York Times to politicize doping cases and turned them into a convenient tool,” said CHINADA. “By frequently hyping up the globally widespread meat contamination issues, [the New York Times] actually aims at disrupting the order of the swimming competitions of the Paris Olympics, disturbing the Chinese athletes and ultimately undermining their performance at the Paris Games.

The untrue report of the New York Times has seriously misled the public perception of anti-doping work and undermined the confidence of swimmers around the world in the clean swimming pool of Paris 2024.”