Australian Olympic legend Mack Horton unloads on Chinese swimming dopers amid drug scandal that has rocked the sport
- Mack Horton has lashed out at the doping authorities
- Swimming has been rocked by a new scandal
- Chinese swimmers tested positive before the Tokyo Games
An exasperated Mack Horton has been left infuriated by the Chinese doping scandal, with the Australian Olympic legend insisting his teammates have been let down by a ‘failed system’.
Shock waves rippled through swimming after it emerged that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ), a banned substance, before the Tokyo Olympics three years ago.
Nevertheless, they were allowed to participate because they were not provisionally suspended. The Chinese team went on to win three gold medals in swimming races involving Australians.
Horton, who famously called out rival Sun Yang – China’s most famous swimmer for failing drug tests – was livid by the news.
“This news is infuriating for the entire sporting community,” Horton told the newspaper Sydney Morning Herald.
Mack Horton has been left outraged by swimming’s latest drug scandal
Australian swimmer Horton famously called out Sun Yang of China during his career
His sentiments have been echoed by many Australian swimmers, with Emma McKeon and Ariarne Titmus taking to social media to denounce the latest development.
The World Anti-Doping Agency, known as WADA, accepted the Chinese team’s explanation that athletes’ drug samples were contaminated by food served to them in the team accommodation during their camp.
Research showed that the TMZ found in the samples would not have resulted in a significant improvement in performance.
But WADA has been accused of a lack of transparency, with Australian Shayna Jack provisionally suspended while she is investigated.
Twenty-three Chinese swimmers tested positive before the Tokyo Olympics
And Horton has called for greater accountability from the relevant authorities following the latest scandal.
“People compete because they like to push themselves and race fairly,” he said.
“The news endangers the integrity of sport in general, and not just swimming. One of the greatest things about sports is the values and morals it teaches us all. The disproportion on display in this incident is shocking.