And even CAS are claiming they levied a lightweight sentence. They didn't strike any of his results because his FINA-administered tests just prior and after the vial-smashing session were all negative.

But CAS had no choice here. If you let someone smash vials and walk away scott-free you might as well shut down WADA. Particularly since it appears that allegations about suspicions about credentials were baseless.

"FINA, the international federation, now faces huge questions about its handling of a case in which it’s role was, at the very least, to remain neutral. The case goes down in swimming and anti-doping history as a thumping reminder that sports federations cannot serve as both police and promoter, the two roles representing a huge conflict of interest."

Oh... really ?

https://triathlonmagazine.ca/...olation-allegations/

Here's a canadian article from a while ago re rio olympics.

^^This!

Ryan Cochrane says too little too late...

LOuis :-)

Third at the grand final in Conzumel too? I have never heard any allegations against either of the Brownlees

the story was that a non-elite program brit failed a test in Cozumel - low levels of clenbuterol. Not part of elite program - so not AB, JB, VH or any of the other elites. Contaminated meat explanation accepted.

i don't think a name was ever released

No name but the first leak was a male elite, eventually GB claimed was not an elite after all. Carpet swept? We will never know

It was more fishy than that. It surfaced because a Canadian triathlon magazine found that a law firm published a marketing statement saying they helped a British triathlete not get a sanctioned after a positive test on clembuterol, both on the a and b samples. Only then, the British federation said "The athlete concerned is not a member of British Triathlon’s World Class Performance Programme” which I was never able to find what it actually meant and who was part of it. And I did a lot of research. The only approved lab in Mexico was then closed for some time.

And this was shortly after Contador received a sanction for clembuterol, because there are no thresholds for it.

https://swimswam.com/...uns-lack-of-remorse/

In other words, run over by the wheel of karma after FINA could no longer shield him from the consequences of his own bad behavior.

And apparently the VP of fins has indicated that vacating his results isn’t off the table (presumably from any events post hammer-time, including 2019 worlds..

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Agreed fishier than two cod trawlers tied together.

Here's a link to the BTF's world class performance programme as of 2018 where the different levels and who is on them

https://www.britishtriathlon.org/...ance-programme_10018


And from 2016:
https://www.britishtriathlon.org/...ld-class-squads_1459

Why? The drugs coursing through his veins doesn't make his gorgeous stroke any less beautiful.

It would be interesting to see how quickly the stroke would fall apart without drugs

As we have seen in the past for the federations and IOC to protect someone, it would have to be a big name, someone who if the problem became public could damage the integrity of the sport and/or the IOC. "not a member of the world class performance programme" hmm ... don't see any need for an athlete of a lower level to be protected, appears more often than not it is the lower athletes, the nobodies, that do get busted and sanctioned.

I only watched the ones from Park Tae-hwan anyway.

Not really pink, I think that guy has a really nice stroke as well.

Sure, definitely not a critic of his stroke. More a critic of the endless TI related stuff that I have seen over the years in the “how to swim like Sun Yang” threads/posts a bit on here but mostly elsewhere.

Maurice

I don’t like it in that it’s simply not possible for most of us to achieve in an actual race situation or hard effort, and trying to emulate it (for us people who aren’t 6’6 and on dope) is just as likely to make you slower.

A much better example, for most of us, is Katie Ledecky. It’s damned smooth, but not an unattainable standard. Reasonably long, but not overly so, and fairly high turnover, ie she has a stroke that’s perfectly balanced between all of the elements.

Watched her swim on YouTube last night at the Des Moines Pro Swim Series going on now. 15:29 1500, she would have placed 4th or 5th in the men’s field. She was over 50m ahead of Leah Smith (who’s damned good in her own right)

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My response has typically been look one or two lanes over at Ryan Cochran, he’s not big and not really tall (6’1”) for a swimmer, withe a count between 80-85. He’s relatively “normal”

Maurice

I really feel bad for Ryan Cochrane in all of this. he got robbed. How many silvers did he get behind guys who have served drug-related suspensions?

2009 WC - silver (gold to Ous Mellouli)
2011 WC - silver to Sun, albeit before Sun was suspended for anything
2012 Olympics - Silver to sun (again before the suspension)
2015 WCs - bronze in 400 behind Sun Yang (post suspension)

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My bad for that particular bit of research. However, ITU did not look good after that plus the Schoeman case which was around the same time. Basic issue was the same, lack of transparency.

• Athlete's name is concealed, despite A and B samples testing positive
• It brakes the news because of an unprofessional bragging of a lawfirm detected by a Canadian tri-mag
• No clear explanation of the case, even afterwards
  
• The only WADA approved lab in Mexico is banned for six months shortly after the incident

In contrast, Contador is striped of two GC titles for a Clembuterol trace despite the report says that the trace came from a contaminated food source (which of course I don't believe anyway).

In general the way anti-doping is managed is full of loop-holes with selective treatment across sports, federations and athletes depending on a variety of circumstances.

The case that makes this thread is just another example.

Mack Horton too. The guy was ridiculed for making a stand and now look. Also Mack's high school was going to name its aquatic center after him, but in an effort to calm relations with China (and full fee paying Chinese students) they are shying away from that.

https://www.smh.com.au/...20200222-p543c0.html

The Chinese swim fans are turning on Yang too...

https://www.scmp.com/...s#Echobox=1583467801

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Could end up with a 16 year ban if he's not careful.


https://au.yahoo.com/...reach-001549457.html

Should be life.